It's You and Me
by abbygrrl89
Summary: Take and wear this ring, as a symbol of my love. With it, I wed you and commit my life to you forever. They're more mature now, more serious and more committed.It's scary, but it happens. Mostly fluff,just give it a shot. It's my first OC fic. RM forever
1. The Family Dinner

**_Okay, so it's been like, 6 years after Ryan moved to Newport and college is over. Ryan and Marissa live together and Summer and Seth are married. I think that's pretty much all you need to know for now. Hope you guys like it. It's my first OC fic..so please...be gentle._**

**Disclaimer- I do not own the OC. wish I did...then i wouldn't have killed Marissa off.**

"Kirsten, hey…it's Ryan…yeah, I'm aware that it's only 7:30 in the morning…well I was just wondering, can Marissa and I come over for dinner tonight? Great, and umm, can you invite Julie and Jimmy too? I'll let you in on the details later. Okay, great…wait can we keep this conversation to ourselves for now? Thanks Kirsten. I'll talk to you later then. Okay…bye." Ryan hangs up the phone and lets out a nervous sigh. He was about to take a huge step in his life and he's completely ecstatic. He was about to ask Marissa Cooper, the love of his life, to he his wife. And tonight, he's going to be asking for her parents' blessing.

He walks back into the master bedroom of a condo that he and Marissa owns. _Man, I can't wait to move into the new house._ He thinks to himself as he imagines how the new house is going to look like.The house that he has been working on for the last few months and is now officially his since he bought it earlier in the week. He and Summer have been working on it together; he had to work on the architecture stuff and Summer took care of the interior designing.

He smiles to himself as he sees Marissa sleeping on the bed peacefully and he gets on the bed and puts his arm around the sleeping beauty.

Marissa flutters her eyes open and feels soft kisses on her collarbone, causing her to smile. She rolls over to her side and faces her prince charming. "Good morning." She says softly as Ryan kisses her softly on the forehead. "You're up early."

"Kirsten called me about work." He replies. "Oh and she invited us to have dinner at their place tonight, along with your parents and Summer and Seth."

"Great. So what do you wanna do today?" She asks.

"Well I've gotta work on the house later but for now…I've got an idea." He says slyly, beginning to kiss her neck once again.

"Sounds good to me." Marissa says with a laugh, pulling the covers on top of them.

**At The Cohen's**

Ryan closes his car door and walks over to Marissa's side and opens her door. They walk up to the Cohen's house hand in hand and rang the doorbell.

"Well, hello you two." Sandy and Kirsten greets them with a smile, letting them in.

"Ryan can we talk to you for a minute? Everybody's outside, Marissa. I think Summer's waiting for you." Sandy says, turning to Marissa.

"Oh, ok. Thanks." Marissa walks off with a smile as she heads to the back yard.

"What's up?" Ryan says casually.

"You tell us. Since when do you ask to have dinner here with the Coopers?" Kristen says suspiciously.

Ryan laughs and lets in a deep breath. _I guess it's time to let the secret out. _"Well, as you guys know, tomorrow is mine and Marissa's 2 year anniversary and I wanna ask her to marry me. _But_ I wanted Julie and Jimmy's blessing first."

Kirsten and Sandy look at each other and then gave Ryan a wide smile that caused Ryan to let out a sigh of relief. "That's great, Ryan!" Kirsten says giving Ryan a hug.

"It's about time you two settle down." Sandy says with a smile.

"But, there's something else." Ryan continues, "That house I've been working on for the last few months…well, I bought it. For Marissa and I."

Kirsten gives him another wide smile "Even better. I'm sure that condo's getting too small for you guys anyhow."

"I'm glad you guys think it's great. Now I have to see what her parents will say." Ryan utters with slight anxiety in his voice.

"Well, let's find out right now." Sandy says gesturing for the three of them to head back with the others.

_That's all I have for now, folks. But since I've been working on this for awhile, I'll be updating alot. I like reviews, so..don't be shy, I wanna hear what you think. Thanks, guys._


	2. Blessings

**Outside**

"Hey Jimmy, Julie." Ryan smiles as Julie gives him a peck on the cheek.

"Ryan, how are you?" Jimmy says shaking Ryan's hand.

"I'm great, thanks."

"Marissa tells me you guys are doing well. That's great." Julie says with a smile on her face.

"Yeah, better than ever. But, that's what I need to talk to you guys about." Ryan says softly, with a slight nervousness in his voice. "Umm, me and Marissa's second anniversary is tomorrow. And umm," _Just spit it out Ryan. Stop stuttering_. "I love your daughter very much and I wanna spend the rest of my life with her, and I was just wondering—

"You want to ask us for our daughter's hand in marriage." Julie says softly with a small smile. Ryan lets out an uneasy laugh and nods.

Jimmy and Julie look at each other for a moment and Jimmy turns back to Ryan. "So, what do you think Jules, should we let this Chino kid marry our daughter?" Jimmy says jokingly.

"I cannot imagine anyone more perfect for Marissa." Julie utters, pulling Ryan into her embrace. Ryan then tells them about the house and how he's planning to propose.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" The three turn around to see Marissa walking up to them.

"Sweetie! Great to see you, I feel like I haven't seen you in a while." Julie says too quickly, giving her daughter a hug.

"Umm, it's great to see you too, Mom, but we had lunch together yesterday." Marissa says, very much confused as she gives her father a hug, hearing a small "Hey, kiddo."

"Right, well…" Julie begins, loss of words, "how's work?"

"Oh, it's great. That house Ryan and I are working on is almost finished, so we might actually have some free time for our second anniversary." She says wrapping an arm around Ryan and forgetting about the previous conversation.

"Actually, babe, I might be a little late tomorrow for our anniversary, I've got this really important meeting. But I'll be off around 9:00, is that okay?" Ryan asks. He's going to be preparing the house with Summer and he wants it to be perfect.

Marissa's face falls, a little taken back. _Is he kidding? It's our anniversary! _"Oh, yeah, sure. We can have dinner after."

Julie, noticing her daughter's disappointment, steps up. "Honey, why don't you show me that house you two are working on tomorrow? I'll keep you occupied while Ryan's gone." She says, giving Ryan a small smile.

"Yeah, sure mom. That'll be great." Marissa says softly. "Well, I'm gunna go and see Summer."

Marissa walks off not giving Ryan another look. "She'll be okay, Ry. I'm sure she'll think it's worth it after." Jimmy says thoughtfully, noticing Ryan's smile fading away from his face.

"I hope so."

* * *

"I mean, it's our anniversary! How can he totally just disregard that!" Marissa shouts in the pool house. Summer and Seth sits on the bed watching their friend in complete rage.

"Well, Coop, it's not like you guys aren't going to be celebrating. He's just going to be a little late." Summer says trying to be supportive. She knows what Ryan's up to and it kills her to see her best friend so upset.

"Yeah, Coop, you know how Ryan is, he's not big on all that cheesy romantic stuff." Seth points out.

"Ok, first off, what did we say about you calling me Coop? And second, Ryan was great last year, he surprised me with dinner and he showered rose petals all over the floor. It was amazing." She says, remembering back to last year. It was truly amazing. Ryan cooked dinner before she came home from work and when Marissa opened the door, the condo was filled with rose petals and candles. It was the most amazing night of Marissa's life.

"Well, I'm sure it'll be great this year too." Summer says reassuringly.

"It better…" Marissa grunts.

"Well, girls, as much fun as this is. I'm going to go see Ryan." Seth says, walking out of the pool house.

"My mom wants me to hang out with her tomorrow before Ryan gets home, wanna come with?" Marissa says sounding hopeful.

"Actually, Coop, I can't tomorrow. Work stuff." Summer says trying to think of an excuse.

"What do you mean? We work together." Marissa asks suspiciously.

"Well, umm, Kirsten asked me to go over some stuff with her on the new house. She didn't ask you 'cause she figured you would be busy with your anniversary." Summer replies, trying to sound casual.

Before Marissa got to protest, Ryan walks into the pool house. "Dinner's almost ready, ladies." He says putting an arm around Marissa's waist.

"I'm gunna go and help set up." Marissa says, pulling away and walking out of the pool house without another word.

Ryan lets out a sigh and puts his head down. "You better make it good tomorrow, Chino. She's not very happy with you right now." Summer says standing up.

"You haven't told Seth yet have you?" Ryan asks, frustration in his voice.

"Are you kidding? He'll end up telling Marissa. I'll tell him tomorrow, right before Marissa gets to the house."

"Great, so let's meet at the house at around 6. That should give us enough time to set up. I've already ordered the roses so I just gotta pick it up tomorrow." Ryan says.

"Sounds good, Atwood. I can't believe you guys are gunna get married!" Summer exclaims.

"After tonight, let's just hope she even speaks to me again." Ryan says quietly as they both walk out of the pool house.


	3. The Next Day

**The Next Morning**

Ryan wakes up, noticing Marissa's gone. He looks at the clock. 11:30 am. He's gotta pick up the roses soon. He gets up and jumps in the shower letting all the details of that day to sink in. "Will you marry me? Marissa Cooper, will you be my wife?I love you Marissa Cooper and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Marissa, let's get married." He lets out a frustrated sigh as he continues to think of what to say.

"Who are you talking to?"

He opens the shower curtain and sees Marissa standing in front of him, still looking pissed. "What? No one." He says quickly. Marissa shakes her head and walks out of the bathroom as Ryan follows. "Happy anniversary, babe." He says softly, as he comes up behind her wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Mmm-hmm."

He begins to kiss her neck, trying to get her to talk. "Second year, huh? That's pretty huge." He says between kisses.

She pulls away, pretending to get her clothes ready. "Yeah." She says easily.

Ryan runs his hand through his wet hair and lets out a sigh. "So, when are you hanging out with your mom?"

"Soon."

Ryan nods, "Right, well, I gotta get ready for work." He begins hoping to get more than a one-word reply this time.

"'Kay." She says, walking towards the bathroom.

"I love you." Ryan says trying to sound cheerful.

"Mmm-hmm." Marissa shuts the door and Ryan cringes at the sound.

* * *

"How come you didn't tell me, man? We're supposed to be brothers, best buds. How come you didn't tell me you're gunna be proposing?" Seth asks, as he follows Ryan and Summer in to the house.

"Summer, I thought you were gunna tell him before Marissa gets here." Ryan asks, frustration growing in his voice.

"He made me tell him, Ryan!" Summer replies.

"Since when can Seth make you do anything?" He asks, looking at her. Summer gives him a small smile and begins to blush. "Never mind, don't answer that."

"Dude, I promise you, you're secret is safe with me." Seth says reassuringly.

"It better. I want this to be perfect, Seth." Ryan says, "This is huge."

"I know, man. So what can I do to help?"

"Start carrying up the candles upstairs in the master bedroom. Summer, start throwing the rose petals around. It's 6:05 now and Julie said they'd be here in an hour and a half, so, we gotta hustle."

Ryan begins to feel nervous and thinks of how Marissa would react. He takes out the little velvet box and stares at it for a moment. Suddenly, he begins to feel a smile form on his face. He was about to ask Marissa Cooper to marry him. It's scary and over whelming but it's what he wants to do. It's what he _needs _to do. They're more serious, more committed and more mature. They don't break up whenever things start to get just a little rough anymore, because they're growing up. It's scary but it's simple. It happens.

"You okay, man?" Ryan snaps back to reality and looks up at his two friends.

"You know what? I've never been better." He replies with a smile.

_**I'm so glad you guys like it so far. lol. and yes i know Julie isn't very...Julie-esque, but since this is pure fluff i decided to make her nice. Proposal's really soon. keep them reviews coming ) thanks.**_


	4. The Proposal

**_Ryan's speech for the proposal was pretty much based on what Chandler said to Monica on Friends. I really liked it, so...hopefully you guys do too. Enjoy._**

"So how are you and Ryan?" Julie asks as Marissa turns the key to open the door to the new house.

"Fine." She replies.

"Just 'Fine'?"

"I just can't believe he's at work on our anniversary."

"Honey, I'm sure it was just a misunderstanding. He says it was an important meeting." Julie says trying to defend Ryan.

"Kirsten says he _chose_ to go to the meeting." Marissa says as they walk into the house.

"Well, I'm sure he still has something special planned." Julie says reassuringly as she walks up the stairs to the master bedroom.

"Mom, you haven't seen down here yet." Marissa says, looking at her mom.

"Well, we'll start from top to bottom." Julie says, realizing what she just did.

"Alright? Sure." Marissa says walking up the stairs.

* * *

"Okay, they're here. You guys hide in the walk in closet." Ryan says lighting the last candle.

They nod in agreement and said their good lucks. Ryan begins to tidy up his shirt and he feels like he's about to throw up from nervousness as he hears Marissa's voice out in the hall.

"And this is the master bedroom." He hears Marissa's muffled voice.

Marissa opens the door and her stomach drops at the sight. She looks back at her mom; "I'll see you at the Cohen's later." Julie says with a smile before shutting the door.

It was beautiful; the room was lit with about a hundred candles, rose petals all over the bed and on the floor, white curtains draped over the windows, but the one thing that caught her eye first was the man standing by the window, the moonlight shining down around him. She walks over to where Ryan was and smiles.

"Happy anniversary." Ryan says softly with a smile on his face.

"Ryan, this is…this is amazing." She cries, throwing her arms around him.

Ryan gently pulls away, so their staring into each other's eyes as he lets in a deep breath. "Marissa, all my life, I've always thought of myself as a nobody, a screw up. I thought I had pretty much everything I'm ever going to need in life…just me, and no one else. But I've always known that something was missing." He pauses and sees her eyes flicker in the moonlight. "And then, that night, on that driveway when I first met you, almost instantly I knew exactly what it was." Another pause as he sees her smiling, her eyes beginning to tear up. "Today, I was thinking of what to say, how I could even begin to explain how I feel, but when you walked in through that door, I realized that the only thing that mattered is that you make me happier than I ever thought I could be…" Marissa gives Ryan's hand a gentle squeeze and lets out a small laugh between the tears, "And if you let me, I will spend the rest of my life trying to make you feel the same way." Ryan kneels down on one knee and pulls out the little velvet box and opens it.

"Oh my gosh, Ryan…" Marissa gasps, clasping a hand over her mouth.

"Marissa Cooper, I love you more than anything in this world. Will you marry me?" He asks with a small smile on his face.

"Yes…" she says softly, laughing between tears, "Yes, of course!" She pulls him into her embrace and kisses him passionately. They break off and gazed at each other's eyes as Marissa whispers, "I love you, Ryan Atwood, so much."

"Guys! Can we come out now?" They laugh as they hear Summer's muffled voice.

Ryan walks over to the closet and opens the door. Summer gives him a hug and then runs to her best friend.

"Coop, you're engaged!" she shouts, throwing her arms around her.

"Dude, that speech!" Seth says putting a hand on his brother's shoulder, "Where the hell did you get it?"

Ryan laughs and gives him a hug. "Oh, but, there's another surprise." He says walking back to Marissa. "Do you like this house?" he asks her. She looks around smiling and nods her head. "Well, it's ours, babe." Ryan utters.

She wraps her arms around him and kisses him on the lips once again. "You are just full of surprises today, aren't you?" she asks, letting out a small laugh.

**_Sorry about the short chapters, i actually figured it would be too long, lol. Well i just don't want the story seeming to rushed. But here it is, the proposal. The Wedding's coming up REALLY soon._**


	5. The Rehearsal Dinner

"Babe! Are you almost ready? We're gunna be late!" Ryan yells from the bottom of the stairs as he puts on his watch.

"I'll be down in a minute!" He hears Marissa yell back. Tonight is the rehearsal dinner. And tomorrow is the wedding day. After all the planning, the flower picking, which color is better for the tablecloths, it's finally here.

"Marissa! We're supposed to be there in 20 minutes and the Arches is a 15 minute drive." Ryan says, frustration growing in his voice.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Ryan tidies his shirt up and looks up at the top of the stairs. There she is, his future wife, wearing a black strapless dress that falls down to her mid-thigh, red trim and red flowers going down along her side. "You look…wow." He begins, not taking his eyes off of her, "You look amazing."

Marissa walks down the stairs with a smile on her face and gives him a small kiss on the lips. "You don't look too bad yourself."

Ryan gives her a wide smile and they walk to the car, hand in hand.

* * *

"Alright, alright, everyone be quiet so the best man can speak." Seth says standing up. Everyone turns and looks at him as he clears his throat. "Hello, I'm Seth Cohen aka the best man." He continues as he sees smiling faces looking up at him. "Okay, I know you all love my comedy but I'm gunna be serious for tonight…okay just for the speech…or maybe just half…" Ryan clears his throat loudly and looks at Seth, "Alright, fine. Well what can I say, Ryan's been my best friend since he got to Newport 6 years ago and nothing's made him more happy than being with Marissa." He looks down at the couple and smiles. "They've both been through a lot together and I can't think of anyone else who deserves this more than they do. So, I'd like to propose a toast for my brother and his lovely lady. I love you guys and congratulations." He walks over to the couple and gives Marissa a kiss on the cheek and a hug for Ryan.

"Thanks man." Ryan says to Seth as they hug.

"No problem, buddy. Anything for you." He replies with a smile.

"Cohen, that was a great speech." Summer says giving Seth as kiss on the cheek.

"Yeah well, you know, underneath this tough exterior is a sweet, sweet soul." He replies.

Summer laughs and hits him playfully, "You're a goof."

"Oh, come on, you love it." He says, pulling her into his embrace.


	6. The Wedding

**_- Here it is people, the moment you have all been waiting for. Reviews would be great..especially for this chapter. It's pretty rushed so. Hope you guys like it. -_**

**_The Wedding_**

"So man, are you ready?" Seth asks as they drive to the beach. They're gunna be meeting with Luke, and Zach to just hang out to get rid of the "wedding jitters" as Seth likes to call it.

"Let's just go to the beach and relax, okay?" Ryan asks, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Alright, fine." Seth says, knowing that if Ryan wants to talk about it, he will. Forcing feelings out of Ryan is never good.

"I'm just… it's crazy you know? I'm getting married. Before I came to Newport I've always kind of figured I'd get married to Theresa and work as a construction worker in Chino." He says glancing at Seth, "Don't get me wrong, I love Marissa to death and I'm so happy that we're going to be spending the rest of our lives together, but, it just seems so insane. I'm gunna be marrying a gorgeous girl from Newport and I work for the biggest company. Six years ago I wouldn't have even thought about going up to Marissa Cooper."

Seth nods, knowing where Ryan was coming from. And it's true, Ryan's grown since he got to Newport and everybody couldn't be more proud of him, but Seth knows that that wasn't the life Ryan was expecting and it's a shock to take it all in. "Dude, you're marrying the girl you love and things are finally going great for you both. Sure, it's a lot to take in, but you both deserve this. Things are finally working out, for everybody."

Ryan nods and smiles at his friend. "Yeah, you're right."

"When am I ever not?" Seth says without a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

Ryan turns the car off and they begin their way towards the beach. "You see them?" he asks, looking around.

"Yeah, I can see Luke's hairy chest from here." Seth says casually walking over to their two friends.

"Chino!" Luke says happily, giving him a hug. "It's the big day, man! How you feeling?"

"You know, nervous as hell." Ryan says with a small laugh.

"You got your vows ready?" Zach asks.

"Yeah, I finished it this morning." Ryan replies, "I've been working on it since I proposed, and even now I still don't think it's good enough."

"I'm sure it's good enough. Dude, I heard your speech for when you proposed was awesome!" Luke says with a smile.

"Yeah, it was pretty amazing." Seth says putting a hand on Ryan's back.

"Really? I mean, what did you say that was so amazing?" Zach asks turning to Ryan.

"I wasn't talking about the speech, I was talking about how Ryan managed to say so much in so little time." Seth points out.

Ryan punches Seth on the arm before taking the football out of Luke's hands. "Alright, let's play!"

"Hey! No one told me we were gunna be playing sports!" Seth cries out as he watches his three friends pass the ball around.

* * *

_**At The Cohen's**_

"So, Coop. Today's the big day!" Summer says as she puts her earrings on.

"I know. I can't believe it." Marissa says with a wide smile on her face. They had about 3 more hours until the wedding and all the ladies are getting ready at the Cohen's house. "Mom, is my dress here yet?" she asks, turning to face her mother.

"Your father should be here soon with it." Julie replies looking at herself in the mirror.

"Okay, and the flowers?"

"Already downstairs." Kirsten says as she walks into the room in her robe.

"Okay, and what about your dresses?" Marissa asks walking around the room trying to make sure everything is set. "You should start putting them on, so we can start taking pictures as soon as my dad gets here with my dress and where the hell are Kaitlyn and Anna—

"Coop, relax, they're downstairs on the phone making sure the boys are doing okay." Summer says reassuringly, "The hair dresser should be here any minute, our dresses are already in the closet, the flowers are ready, and your dress will be here soon. It's gunna be okay."

"I know, I'm just…it's nerve wracking, you know? I mean, I just finished my vows last night." Marissa says anxiety in her voice. "It's just a lot to take."

"Sweetie, today is your day. Enjoy it. You're marrying the man you love, there's nothing better than that." Julie says putting a hand on Marissa's shoulder.

"You're right." Marissa says with a smile. "You guys are right! Today's gunna be perfect…I'm about to marry Ryan Atwood." She utters, not to anyone particular, "I'm getting married today." She says with a smile on her face.

* * *

"Here, let me help you, kid." Sandy says with a smile as he begins helping Ryan with his tie. The wedding starts in 45 minutes and he was just about finished getting ready. The groomsmen are already downstairs and the limo is already up front.

"Thanks, Sandy. I'm usually okay at doing this." Ryan says with a small laugh, "I don't know what's going on with me today."

Sandy nods with a smile, "You nervous?" he asks, pulling the tie up to Ryan's neck.

Ryan laughs and lets out a small sigh, "To death." He says, "But I'm marrying Marissa Cooper, and really, it's what I've wanted since the night I met her."

"Well, I'm happy for you, kid." Sandy says, putting a hand on Ryan's shoulder, "Who would've known that a kid from Chino would be marrying a Newpsie girl?" he says with a laugh.

"Not me." Ryan utters, smiling at his foster father, "Listen Sandy. Thanks…for everything. I don't know how I could ever repay you for everything you've done for me."

Sandy nods with a small smile and looks at Ryan, "You've done enough for me as I have for you, and Kirsten and I cannot be anymore proud." He says in a serious tone, "Both of my boys are growing up." He pulls Ryan into his embrace and Ryan smiles, "I'm getting so old." Ryan lets out a laugh as they pull away. "Now, let's get you married."

Ryan gives him a smile and they head towards the front door.

* * *

"You look incredible, kiddo." Jimmy says softly to his daughter, as they got ready to walk down the aisle.

"Thanks, dad" Marissa says with a smile, "I'm so glad you came."

"Are you kidding? I would never miss my little girl's wedding. Work can wait." Jimmy replies giving her a kiss on the cheek. Suddenly, they begin to hear the wedding music beginning to play. "Here we go. You ready, kiddo?" he asks, looking at his daughter.

Marissa lets in a deep breath and nods with a smile. Jimmy returns the smile and they begin to walk down the red carpet.

Ryan watches as Marissa comes into view, white dress and all and Ryan's heart begins to race as he gazes at the love of his life, _She's beautiful. And I get to be the one to marry her. _He thought with a smile.

Marissa's heart begins to race as well, as soon as she saw the man of her dreams, standing up at the altar. _It's finally here. I'm about to be Mrs. Ryan Atwood._

They approach the altar and Jimmy shakes Ryan's hand, "Take care of her, alright?" he says softly, giving Ryan a smile.

"I promise." Ryan replies.

Jimmy nods and gives Marissa a soft kiss on the cheek before letting his daughter go. Marissa's eyes begin to water and she blinks back tears of joy and takes Ryan's hand as they begin to walk up the altar, before the priest.

"Friends, we have gathered here today to witness Ryan Atwood, and Marissa Cooper to unite in holy matrimony. Will you please join your rights hands." The couple takes each other's hands and smiles. "Let us now proceed with the vows." Summer leans in and hands Marissa her vows.

"Ryan, for so long, I wondered if I would ever find my prince, my knight in shining armor who comes into my rescue when I'm in need. And six years ago, at the end of the Cohen's driveway," Ryan gives her a smile and Marissa continues on, "I found everything I have been looking for my whole life, and now here we are, with our future before us, and I only want to spend it with you, my prince, my knight, my friend."

The priest gives Marissa a smile and then turns to Ryan. Seth leans in and holds out Ryan's piece of paper. Ryan looks at Marissa and then to Seth and shakes his head, "It's okay…" he utters turning back to face Marissa.

"Marissa, I thought, this would be the hardest thing I have ever had to do, and it took me a _long _time to write my vows because I knew something was missing from it. And when I saw you walking down that aisle, I realized how simple it was because I love you…more than anything. I ask you to share my life with me, from now and forever. Whatever you need, I'm here for you. Always, from here to eternity. You're the person I was meant to spend my whole life with."

Marissa smiles, tears in her eyes and gives Ryan's hand a small, gentle squeeze. The priest then asks for the rings and turns to Marissa, "Place this ring on Ryan's finger as a token of your love for him."

"Take and wear this ring, as a symbol of my love. With it, I wed you and commit my life to you forever."

The priest then turns to Ryan, "Place this ring on Marissa's finger as a token of your love for her."

"Take and wear this ring, as a symbol of my love. With it, I wed you and commit my life to you forever."

The priest turns to face the guests, "By the authority invested in me by the state of California, I know pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

Almost instantly, Ryan pulls Marissa and kisses her passionately, "I love you." He whispers after breaking off.

"And I love you." Marissa utters softly with a smile.

"May I present to you, Mr. And Mrs. Atwood." Their family begins to applaud as they walked back up the aisle in the church, hand in hand.

"We're married!" Marissa says softly as they stood in the back of the church for the first time as husband and wife.

"Yes, we are, Mrs. Atwood." Ryan whispers gently, pulling her into his embrace.

**_And there it is...sorry it's not as exciting. But alot more is coming...maybe a baby on the way? ooooh. The reviews I've been getting are awesome..thanks guys._**


	7. Surprises

"Well hello Mr. And Mrs. Atwood." Sandy and Jimmy greets them with a smile as they walk into the Cohen's front door. It's been two days since the wedding and they wanted to spend time with the family before heading off to Italy for their honeymoon. Marissa gives Sandy a kiss on the cheek and heads to the kitchen. "How are the newly weds doing?" Sandy asks Ryan as he closes the door behind them.

"Never better. Only, Marissa's been acting a little weird since yesterday morning." Ryan replies.

"What do you mean?" Jimmy asks.

"Well, nothing big, I mean, I'm pretty sure she doesn't want a divorce just yet," he says with a small laugh, "but, she's been tired a lot, who knows, maybe from lack of sleep, I know she was working hard on the wedding and stuff so."

"Yeah, it's probably just exhaustion. She just needs rest." Sandy says reassuringly.

"Yeah, so our honeymoon would be well deserved. I'm so glad we're leaving tomorrow night." Ryan utters as Sandy puts a hand on his back leading him into the kitchen.

"Hey, buddy! How's the wife treating ya?" Ryan laughs and gives Seth a hug.

"Hey man." He says softly with a smile and then gives Summer a kiss on the cheek as she hands him a glass of wine.

"Here, Coop." Summer says holding out a glass for Marissa to take as Ryan and Seth head over to the table to help Kirsten and Julie set up.

Marissa shakes her head, "No, it's alright, I'll just have a glass of water."

Summer, surprised at her best friend's sobriety, laughs, "What? Since when do you say no to a glass of wine?"

Marissa lets out a small laugh and takes the glass, "Just not in the mood for alcohol, I'll give it to Ryan." She says softly.

"Come on, Coop. What are you pregnant or something?" Summer says jokingly. Marissa doesn't say anything, but smiles at her friend, and from the corner of her eye, she sees Ryan and Jimmy turn their head quickly, right after they hear Summer's comment.

"What?" Ryan asks, not blinking. Marissa smiles shyly and looks at her best friend, who's face was in disbelief and then back to her husband.

"Baby, I was gunna tell you tonight…" Marissa begins nervously, seeing her husband's shock. "I'm sorry, I just tried the pregnancy test this morning…"

"You're…you're pregnant? I mean, are you sure?" Ryan asks, his face expressionless.

"Yeah, I did it 4 times to make sure, and I'm pretty sure I peed on the stick right." She replies with a small nervous laugh. Suddenly, a wide smile begins to form on Ryan's face and he takes Marissa's face in his hands and kisses her lips.

The rest of the family watches with smiles on the faces. Jimmy wraps an arm around Julie who was in the verge of tears, but with a big smile on her face. "I'm gunna be a dad!" Ryan shouts. "Oh my God! I'm gunna be a father!" he says softly, staring into Marissa's eyes. "I need to sit down."

Marissa laughs and drops a soft kiss on Ryan's cheek as everyone begins to say their congrats and gives out the hugs.

* * *

After hours of talking about the future, baby names and labor, Ryan decides it was time to head home for him and Marissa. He wants to make sure Marissa is well rested for their trip tomorrow and he wants to make sure the baby would be in good health so the couple decides that a quick trip to the doctor's the next morning would be in order.

Ryan grips the wheel tightly, thoughts racing through his mind. He wonders if it was going to a boy or a girl and thinks about driving to little league baseball games if it was going to be a little boy, or ballet recitals if it was a girl. He imagines reading a bedtime story to his child and tucking them in. He wonders how the next few months would be like with Marissa, how it would feel like to carry his baby for the first time, but most of all, he wonders if he was going to be a good dad, if he was going to be even half the father Sandy Cohen was to him and Seth, not like his own father who bailed on the family when Ryan was only 4 years old. He shakes his head and realizes that his child would not be going through the same childhood as he did, and Ryan was going to make sure of that. He pictures his little boy or girl running towards him after a hard day's work and gives him soft kisses on his cheek that makes him forget about his frustrations. Ryan finds himself smiling at his thoughts and glances sideways at his wife, looking out the window.

Marissa stares out of the window of the car as she imagines what the baby is going to be like, if she's gunna be going to pee wee football games or driving to ballet practices. She imagines girls' day out if she was to have a daughter, or when she would be packing lunches for a father-son bonding day. She wonders about her child's first steps, first words, first day of school, and even their first broken heart. She imagines family nights when the three of them would watch movies, or play board games. The thoughts put a smile on her face and she turns her head and looks over at Ryan who has his eyes focused on the road with a smile on his face and Marissa knows that he too was thinking about the same thing.

Ryan catches a glimpse of Marissa watching him and takes her hand into his as they paint a picture of their future together.

**Alright, i need opinions, boy or girl? and i need names too...i've got some girl names picked out but i dunno about them yet. Any suggestions?**


	8. It's a 2 for 1 Special

"Marissa?"

Marissa rolls over and ignores the voice calling her name. "Babe, wake up." Marissa lets out a frustrated groan and now pulls the blanket over her head. "Marissa, we gotta get to the doctor's!" Suddenly, her eyes flutters open, remembering the events of the day before. She slowly rolls over and sees Ryan standing beside the bed, already dressed. "Great, you're up. Now go and get ready." He says casually, giving his wife a quick peck on the lips before walking off to the dresser to put on his watch.

Marissa slowly gets up and rubs her eyes tiredly and Ryan smiles as he sees his wife's tired reflection in the mirror. "Come on, Riss. Go and get ready." Suddenly, Marissa runs to the bathroom without a word.

Panicked, Ryan rushes in behind her and holds her hair out of her face as she empties her stomach into the toilet.

Marissa wipes her mouth and turns to face Ryan who wraps his arms around his wife gently. "You okay?" he asks softly.

Marissa nods, trying to steady her breathing, "I guess that's what morning sickness is like."

Ryan lets out a small laugh and kisses her hair. "Alright, how about you jump in the shower, and I'll fix you up some coffee and bagels? Sound good?"

Marissa nods her head a few times and Ryan smiles, giving her another kiss on the lips before she hops into the shower and gets ready.

* * *

_"Dad, where are you going?" a little boy asks as he sees his father putting on his shoes with a duffel bag in his hand. _

_"I'm gunna be going away for a while." The father replies as he walks over to his son and ruffles his blonde hair. "Take care of your mother, alright?" The little boy nods his head a few times, tears running down his face causing the older man to wipe them away, "Atwood's don't cry." He says softly before walking off and shuts the door behind him._

_The little boy rushes to the window and watches as his father disappears down the street and blinks back more tears. "Atwoods don't cry…" he repeats silently to himself._

"Ry?" Ryan snaps back into reality and turns his head to face Marissa sitting beside him in the waiting room, "You okay? You looked like you were in a daze for a second." She says with a small laugh.

"Yeah…" Ryan replies softly taking Marissa's hand into his, "Just…remembered something."

Marissa nods her head in understanding, knowing not to force anything out of Ryan. He'll tell me if he wants to. She thinks to herself.

"I was just…I just remembered that night my dad left." He begins, looking down at his feet, "The last thing he said to me was 'Atwoods don't cry.'" He says softly with a sad laugh, "No, 'I love you's', not even an 'I'm gunna miss you'." Marissa gives his hand a small squeeze and remembers when her dad told her he was leaving Newport, but Marissa was 17 then, she remembers how devastated she was and it breaks her heart just imagining how things were with Ryan, he was only a little boy when his dad left. "Since then, it was me and Trey against the world," Ryan continues, "against my mom's boyfriends." He says silently with a small smile, and looks at Marissa again. "And when Trey left me, the Cohen's took me in. Sandy was the father I never had and if I can become even half of what the father he was to me for the last 6 years, I know for a fact that this child would be in good hands." Ryan says, his voice gentle and low.

Marissa smiles and gives Ryan a soft kiss on the lips, "You're gunna be an amazing dad." She says softly.

Ryan gives her a smile that makes Marissa's heart melt, "And you're gunna be an incredible mom." He says as he takes Marissa's hand to his lips.

Suddenly, a nurse comes into the waiting room with a clipboard in hand, "Mr. And Mrs. Atwood?" she says looking around the waiting room.

"That's us." Ryan says getting up.

"Dr. Davis will see you now." The nurse says nicely, gesturing for Ryan and Marissa to follow her.

They walk into a middle sized room and the nurse hands Marissa a hospital gown. "The doctor will be with you shortly, she's just going to be doing some tests." Marissa lets out a relieved sigh when she heard the nurse say she. It would be awkward if it were a guy, she says to herself.

"Okay, thank you." Marissa says, as the nurse walks out of the room. "You nervous?" she asks Ryan as she gets up on the small bed.

"A little bit." Ryan replies, "I don't know what to expect."

Marissa laughs at his remark and lets out a small sigh, "Well that makes the two of us then."

Suddenly the door opens and a middle-aged brunette woman walks in. "Hello there." She says cheerfully "I'm Dr. Maureen Davis and I'm gunna be your doctor for the next 9 months." She shakes Ryan's hand and then Marissa's.

"Alright, so I take it as this would be your first time here." Dr. Davis says. Ryan and Marissa let out nervous laughs and nod their heads, Dr. Davis gives them a reassuring smile and begins to set up a small machine. "Well we're just gunna give you an ultrasound to confirm your pregnancy." She begins, sounding professional, "So, Marissa, can you lift up your shirt? I'm just gunna put this gel on your stomach, it's gunna be a little cold," the doctor begins to squeeze the gel on Marissa's flat stomach and Marissa gasps at the sudden chill, A little cold my ass. She thinks bitterly, the doctor laughs and begins dragging the transducer across her stomach. "Well, Marissa from what I can see, you're about 6 weeks pregnant." The doctor utters, looking at the small monitor.

Suddenly, they begin to hear a small tapping sound coming from the machine, "What's that sound?" Ryan asks, taking Marissa's hand into his.

"That sound, is the baby's heart beat." The doctor says gently with a smile on her face, Ryan's heart begins to race and a sudden rush of joy flows through his whole body, "And from what I can tell, there are two heart beats." The doctor continues. Marissa and Ryan looked at each other in disbelief and then back at the doctor.

"Two heart beats?" Marissa asks, thoughts racing through her head as a smile begins to form on her face.

The doctor lets out a small laugh and points towards the small screen on the machine, "You see those two tiny blobs?" she asks, and Ryan and Marissa nods, "Those are your babies." She says softly.

Marissa gives Ryan's hand a squeeze as she watches the monitor, "So, we're gunna have twins? Like…two babies?" Ryan asks, still in shock. The doctor nods again. "Those little things that look like peanuts?" Ryan asks one more time, not taking his eyes off the monitor, "Those are our babies?" Marissa laughs at her husband's amusement and looks back at the monitor.

"Those are your babies." The doctor repeats with a laugh, "Would you like some pictures?" she asks, and Ryan and Marissa nod their heads. The doctor turns back to the machine and presses a button that begins to print the pictures. "Here you go." She says, handing Ryan the pictures and then helping Marissa wipe off the remaining gel on her stomach. "The babies are due around December, but I'll see you both in about a month to confirm. If you have any questions, just call, alright?" the couple says their thanks before the doctor walks out of the room leaving them to process everything in their heads.

"Two babies…" Ryan whispers, looking down at the black and white pictures as Marissa hops off the bed and then beside Ryan. "Our babies." Ryan says softly, lifting up his head to face Marissa who was on the verge of tears.

"Our babies." She repeats silently looking down at the pictures in Ryan's hand as she feels Ryan's arm around her. "You okay?" she asks gently.

Ryan lets out a small sigh and smiles, "I've never been better."

"Good." She says as she wraps an arm around him, "Because we just got in way over our heads, Atwood."

Ryan lets out a small laugh and Marissa smiles. She leans in to kiss him on the cheek but Ryan turns his head quickly so their lips meet instead and for that moment, everything disappears. A chapter of their life is ending but a new one begins, the thought itself is terrifying but they both know that it's what each other wants, more than anything else in this whole world and that and itself is a perpetual feeling of happiness knowing their in it together.

**Drama coming up soon..but nothing big...just trying to keep things interesting. Still need names guys...hope you like the twin thing...i can always change it cant i? lol..reviews please. thanks**


	9. Blast from the Past

"Home sweet home." Marissa says as they drive up their driveway with a sigh. Ryan glances at her and laughs. "I mean, Italy's great and all, but it's too cold." She continues as she gets out of the car, feeling the California sun warming her t-shirt. Since it was still March, it was still chilly in Europe, unlike Orange County.

"Can't argue with that." Ryan says in agreement. There was no place like Orange County. A smile forms on his face as he remembers back to their first day in Italy.

**_Flashback_**

_Marissa and Ryan walk into a small café in Milan. "We'll just have some coffee and bagels. Thanks." Ryan says to the waiter nicely, but to the couple's surprise, the waiter just stood in place, face in confusion._

_Ryan looks at Marissa and lets out an uneasy laugh. "Great, you picked the one café in Milan that don't speak English." Marissa utters, looking back in the menu._

_"Well, how do you say coffee and bagels in Italian?" Ryan asks._

_"Ryan, I'm from Orange County just like you. How the hell am I suppose to know any Italian words?" Marissa says easily._

_"Attesa un secondo" the waiter says before walking to the back._

_"I think he said hold on." Marissa says. Ryan gives an idle shrug and waits for the waiter to come back._

_This time the waiter was followed by an older man. "Can I help?" he asks with a strong Italian accent._

_"Great, you speak English." Ryan says with a small sigh, "Can we have some coffee and bagels?"_

_The older man sighs and turns to the younger waiter. "Vogliono il caffè ed i bagel." He says silently, just loud enough for Ryan and Marissa to hear. The younger man obliges and walks off._

_"Very sorry." The older waiter says, giving them a smile. He was about to walk away until Ryan stops him._

_"Excuse me, how do you say coffee?" he asks, "You know, for future references."_

_The waiter laughs and says, "caffè." Before saying sorry again and walking off._

_"Caffè means coffee…hmm what do you think of that? It's a good thing I asked, just incase we want coffee and we run into an Italian who doesn't speak English again." Ryan says casually._

_Marissa leans in and gives him a soft kiss on the lips and smiles. "I knew there was a reason I married you."_

Ryan laughs at the memory as Marissa takes his hand into hers while walking up to their front door.

Almost as soon as they walk into the house, Ryan's cell phone rings. He pulls it out of his pocket and looks into the small screen.

"It's Sandy." He says softly. Marissa gives an idle shrug and walks towards the couch to sit down and watch TV as Ryan picks up the phone. "Hey Sandy…we just got in actually…oh yeah it was great, a little cold but hell it was Italy…yeah sure…is everything okay…" Marissa turns her head and watches as Ryan talked through the phone, "Okay…umm we've got some pretty big news too." He remembers back to the week before at the doctor's office and realizes they haven't told anyone yet. "We'll be there in a few minutes…okay, bye."

"Everything okay?" Marissa asks as Ryan closes his cell phone.

"He wants us to go over there." Ryan replies, confusion in his voice.

"Did he say why?"

"Nope, he just said to get there soon. So I guess we should go."

Marissa nods and they once again hop into their car and drive to the Cohen's.

**At the Cohen's**

Ryan pulls up on the Cohen's drive way and sees Sandy already sitting on the steps.

"Is everything okay?" Ryan asks as he approaches the older man with Marissa trailing behind him.

"How's everything?" Sandy utters, changing the subject.

Ryan flashes a smile and looks at Marissa who was doing the same thing. "Can we talk inside? Marissa and I have some pretty big news." He says happily.

Sandy forces a smile and nods before going back into the house and seeing Kirsten.

"Well hello you two. How was Italy?" Kirsten asks looking slightly uncomfortable.

"It was great. Thanks. But we have something to tell you guys." Marissa says, excitement in her voice as Sandy and Kirsten looks at the other couple expectantly, "We're having twins!"

A smile suddenly forms on Sandy and Kirsten's face and they give the younger couple hugs. "Congratulations you two!"

"Yeah, thanks, are Summer and Seth here? I wanna let them in on this." Ryan says eagerly.

Almost as if on cue, Summer walks into the living room holding a little boy's hand, followed by Seth and a familiar face from the past.

"Hey, Ryan…Marissa."

**Okay, here comesSOME drama...i hope you guys like it. And also..I didn't wanna expand on the honeymoon too much..so I put that small flashback in instead, oh yeah and i just went on free translation for the italian stuff..i really don't know how they say bagels and coffee and italy...please review and tell me what you think.**


	10. More Changes

"Theresa…." Ryan stares at the girl beside Seth without blinking, and an awkward silence fills the room.

"It's good to see you Theresa." Marissa says a moment later as she walks over to her old friend, and gives her a welcome hug "And who is this?" she asks, bending over to shake the boy's little hand.

"I'm Jaiden." The little boy says happily, not letting go of Summer's hand.

"Well, hi there Jaiden." Marissa says with a smile on her face, "I'm Marissa."

"Theresa's been here for a couple of days to visit." Sandy points out, finally Ryan breaks his focus on Theresa and looks down at the little boy. "Seth, Summer, why don't you go take Jaiden in the back to play, your mother and I are gunna talk to these three." Sandy continues.

"Sure, let's go Jaiden." Seth says taking the little boy's hand and gestures for the back door.

"We'll be in the pool house, Coop." Summer says before the three disappears into the kitchen.

"Listen, I'm sorry to just come here unexpectedly…I just, I didn't know where else to go." Theresa begins.

"What do you mean?" Ryan asks confused with a little bit of aggravation.

"On second thought, Theresa, why don't you go to the back with Seth and Summer, we'll talk to Ryan and Marissa." Sandy says calmly. Theresa looks at Ryan sadly and then nods before heading to the back.

"Sandy, can you explain to me what's going on?" Ryan asks, torn between being confused, and being slightly angry.

"Okay, look, money's pretty tight for Theresa right now; her mother's getting sicker and sicker and Eddie's no where to be found." Sandy explains. Ryan doesn't say anything so Sandy decides to continue, "She can't take care of Jaiden and her mother by herself…she came here because she didn't know what else to do."

"Jaiden can stay with us." Marissa finally says, causing Ryan to look at her.

"What?" Ryan asks in disbelief.

"He can stay with us." Marissa repeats, "Chino's what? An hour away? Theresa can come and visit him a few times every week or whatever, I'll even pick her up myself."

"Marissa, we can't deal with this right now. This isn't as easy as you make it sound to be." Ryan says, frustration in his voice.

"Ryan, if you can't help her, it's fine, we'll lend her some money and…" Sandy begins

Ryan lets out a frustrated sigh as Marissa and Kirsten watch intently at the two men. "She's your friend Ryan…she needs your help." Kirsten finally says. Silence again fills the room as Ryan thinks about how he's gunna pull through this one. "We'll leave you two to talk." Kirsten says before her and Sandy walk out of the living room.

"What are you thinking?" Marissa asks softly as Ryan runs his hand through his hair.

"Things were finally going well. I just…I don't think we can deal with this right now…with the babies coming, that's putting too much stress on you itself." Ryan says, frustration in his voice.

Marissa takes Ryan's hand into hers and lets out a small sigh, "Theresa is our friend and she needs our help. We can get through this, and besides since Kristen is insisting I start my maternity leave soon, I'm gunna need some company in the house…and it's gunna be good practice, plus Summer can always help." Marissa says reassuringly.

Ryan forces a small smile and lifts Marissa's hand to his lips. "But if it gets too much for you…I'm sure Sandy and Kirsten would _love _to have another little kid in the house." He says softly.

Marissa gives him a reassuring smile and nods. "So let's go and see our new room mate shall we?" she asks, getting up.

**In The Pool house**

"Press the O button to kick…and then…no, that's square Jay…yeah that one…"

Ryan and Marissa hears Seth talking to the little boy in the pool house, clearly teaching him how to play the play station already. "I don't wanna play anymore Uncle Seth, this is too hard." They hear little boy say followed by a laugh from Summer.

"Cohen, stop trying to force him to play. The kid doesn't like Star Wars." She says plainly.

"Already trying to corrupt the kid, Seth?" Ryan asks jokingly as they walk into the pool house causing everybody to turn their heads.

"Dude, I'm just trying to cultivate some culture in the child's life." Seth utters not taking his eyes off the TV.

"Yeah, and he's doing that by showing him how to play Star Wars. Classic." Sandy says with a small smile.

Ryan lets out a small laugh and then a sigh. "Umm, Theresa, can we talk to you? With Sandy and Kirsten."

Theresa nods and walks out with Ryan and Marissa, followed by Sandy and Kirsten.

Ryan runs his hand through his hair and begins to talk "Okay, umm, we decided that Jaiden can stay with us for a while and—

Theresa shakes her head and cuts him off, "No, I can't let you guys do that. With a baby coming? I can't do that…"

"Babies…actually." Ryan says, correcting her.

"Ryan." Marissa shoots her husband a glare and then back to Theresa, "Listen, really it's fine with us. Summer can always help, and I can use the practice. Really it's fine. You have to take care of your mom." Theresa lets out a sigh and looks down at her feet. "We'll make sure he calls every night. Ryan and I can pick you up from your mom's house whenever you want to see him…"

"Or we can." Kirsten points out as Sandy agrees.

"Yeah, and we can drive to Chino so your mom can see Jaiden too." Marissa finishes, "Really, this is fine."

Theresa lets out a small smile and looks at Ryan, "Is this okay with you?" she asks.

Ryan looks at Marissa and then to Sandy and Kirsten and then back to Theresa, "As my oldest friend…anything." He says, giving Theresa a small smile.

Theresa gives him a small smile and nods. "Thank you guys so much." She says as she gives Marissa and then Ryan a hug. "I'm glad I can make sure Jaiden's safe."

"Mama, I'm hungry." The five adults turn their heads and sees Jaiden standing by the door of the pool house, Summer standing beside him.

"Okay, I'll get you something to eat." Theresa says with a smile, walking over to her son.

"The hotdogs are in the house." Kristen says, "I'll go and get them." Theresa nods her head and picks up Jaiden before walking over to Ryan and Marissa.

"Jay, sweetie, you know Uncle Ryan right?" Theresa asks. Jaiden nods his head and Theresa continues, "Well you're gunna be staying with him and Aunt Marissa for a while, okay?"

Jaiden looks over at the couple and then back at his mother, "Where are you going?" he asks, sadness in his voice.

"I have to take care of your abuela, sweetie." Theresa replies and Marissa can tell that she was full on fighting back tears.

Jaiden looks down at the ground with a small frown on his face, and from what everybody can see, the little boy was thinking. Finally, he looks back at Theresa, "Will you come and visit?" he asks.

Theresa nods with a small smile, "Of course I will, and they'll even drive you back to our house sometimes so you can see abuela."

The little boy nods and flashes Ryan and Marissa a smile that makes their hearts melt at the sight. "Okay." He says quietly as Theresa puts him down, "Can I have my hotdog now?" he asks, looking up at his mom.

Theresa nods her head and looks back at Summer.

"Oh, umm, I'll get you your hotdog Jay. Let's go inside." She says, "Cohen! Let's go!" she screams into the pool house before heading into the kitchen, and almost instantly, Seth comes into view and follows.

"Thanks again you guys. Once I get things in order, I promise, I—

"Don't even mention it. We're happy to help." Ryan says with a smile as Marissa nods in agreement.

"Well let's go, kids. The hotdogs are waiting." Sandy says as he gestures for the kitchen.

* * *

"Jay, be good for your aunt and uncle, okay?" Theresa says as Ryan puts Jaiden's things in the trunk.

The little boy nods, holding Marissa's hand. "Tell abuela I love her and get better, okay?"

"I promise, baby." Theresa says with a nod walking to her son. "Come here." Jaiden walks over to his mother and throws his arms around her neck. "I love you, okay?" Theresa says softly in his ear, tears running down her face.

"I love you too." The little boy whispers before pulling away. He sees his mom crying and gives her a kiss on the cheek, "Don't cry, mommy." He says softly, bring his small hands to Theresa's face. "I'll be good, I promise."

Theresa nods and laughs between tears and kisses her son's forehead gently, "I know you will." She says softly before getting up and taking in a deep breath. "Thank you guys for doing this." She says.

Marissa smiles and gives Theresa a comforting hug. "It's good to see you again. We'll call you as soon as we get home." She says, pulling away.

Theresa nods her head and looks at Ryan. "Congratulations on the twins." She says softly.

Ryan smiles and wraps his arms around his friend. "Thanks. And I promise, Jaiden's in good hands."

"I know he is." She says softly with a smile. The two friends pull away and Theresa says her goodbyes to Sandy and Kirsten and then to Seth and Summer before walking over to her car.

Jaiden waves goodbye to his mother in Marissa's arms and with that, the car drives away.

* * *

"I'm just gunna go to the store and grab some food for Jaiden, I'll be back." Ryan says quietly. Marissa nods and gets out of the car and then takes Jaiden into the house.

Ryan keeps his eyes focused on the road with thoughts racing through his head. Just a week ago, he had a wife and was about to be a father of twins. Now, he has a wife, twins, and a 5-year-old living in his house. What was he suppose to call Jaiden? Who was he to be taking care of Theresa's son?

Suddenly, Ryan turns the car around, worries and doubts clouding his mind. He pulls over on the driveway and gets out of the car, hurrying to get to the front door. Finally he gets there, and all he could do was stare at the door, until finally the door swings open.

"Ryan!" Kirsten looks at him and could already tell something was wrong. "Come in."

Ryan shakes his head, "Actually, umm I can't take long, is Sandy here?" he asks.

"Yeah, he's in his office. Why, is everything okay?" she asks, even though she feels that the question was already answered.

Ryan looks down at his feet and then back to Kirsten, "This whole Jaiden thing…I just don't feel comfortable with it. I mean…he's Theresa's son…for a while I thought I was the father…and…I don't know…"

Kirsten forces out a small smile and gestures for them to sit on the steps. "Ryan, if this is too much, we'll take Jaiden. But, I mean, Theresa went to you because she felt that she could trust you with her son…and you may not think it now, but that's incredible courage to leave your child with someone else." Kirsten says gently, "And to be the person that parent trusts, that's a pretty amazing feeling too. When your mom left you with me, do you know how scared I was?" she asks, with a small laugh, "I thought it was such an irresponsible thing to do, leaving your child, but sometimes, you have to make sacrifices to keep them in good hands." Ryan lets out a small sigh and looks up at the sky, "Theresa needs you right now, and she trusts you to take care of Jaiden…more than anyone else."

Finally, Ryan smiles and looks at Kirsten, "You think Marissa and I will do a good job as parents?" he asks softly.

Kirsten nods with a smile, "There's not a doubt in my mind." She replies, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks." Ryan utters, "Well then I should go, I'm suppose to get food for Jaiden, and Marissa's probably wondering where I am."

Kirsten nods and Ryan gets up and heads back to his car. Kirsten watches as her son waves at her goodbye and drives away.

"That was pretty good."

Kirsten turns around and sees Sandy leaning on the doorframe, arms across his chest. "Well, I figured, since you always give the advice to the kids, I could take this one." She says with a small smile as Sandy takes a seat beside her.

"Well, I think you did a great job." Sandy says, putting an arm around her, "You know, for a rookie."

Kirsten lets out a small laugh and rests her head on her husband's shoulder.

**I'm back to more fluff...but I'll put in some drama too...don't worry. Glad you guys like it. Reviews are awesome!**

**P.S- I don't know how far away Chino is from Newport..so forgive me if I'm wrong on the "one hour away" thing..lol**


	11. It's a Family Thing

Ryan opens the door to his house, grocery bags in hand and sees Marissa sitting on the couch watching TV with Jaiden.

"Hey, what took you so long?" Marissa asks, taking her eyes off the TV.

"Traffic, but umm, I got us some take out, cookies, ice cream, and some McDonald's." Ryan says, looking through the bags, "You know, if our little buddy here doesn't like Thai just yet."

Marissa lets out a small laugh and takes Jaiden's hand before following Ryan into the kitchen. "Hey what's that?" she asks, noticing another bag.

"Oh, and I stopped by Toys R Us and bought…." Ryan takes out a plastic baseball bat, a small baseball, and two baseball gloves, "these." He says, handing them over to Jaiden. "You wanna play some baseball, Jay?"

"Yeah!" Jaiden says excitedly, as he looks at the toys Ryan just bought him.

"But wait, I bought this too." Ryan pulls out a small baseball cap and puts it on the little boy's head. "Now you look like a pro."

"Awesome! Can we go play now?" Jaiden asks, tugging on Marissa's hand.

"But, dinner?" Marissa says, trying to hide her smile.

"Aww, come on, please?" Ryan says, picking Jaiden up into his arms.

"Just for a little bit." Jaiden pipes in.

Marissa lets out a defeated sigh and shakes her head, "Fine, I'll bring out the food, so we can eat outside."

"Yes!" The two boys rush to the back yard and leaves Marissa in the kitchen.

* * *

When Marissa finished getting the food set up in the back yard, she sits on one of the chairs and watches Ryan trying to teach Jaiden how to bat.

"Okay, so keep your eyes on the ball, and then…wait…" he walks over to Jaiden and adjusts his hands on the bat and then turns the little boy's baseball cap backwards, "now you can hit well and look good…" he says, causing Marissa to let out a laugh. Ryan throws the ball lightly and Jaiden hits it, but the ball lands in the pool.

"Oh man!" Jaiden says, with a small smile on his face.

"Aww, well we'll get it later, but for now, I'm starved. Let's eat." Ryan says, ruffling the little boy's hair. "Good hit though, kid."

Jaiden follows Ryan and sits with Marissa who was getting Jaiden's McDonald's ready. Ryan smiles and watches as Jaiden plays with the toy from his happy meal and Marissa reaching over and takes off Jaiden's baseball cap, hearing a small, "No hats on the table."

He lets out a small, satisfied sigh, and takes a drink from his glass of water. _Now this is my life._ He thinks to himself with a smile.

**_You guys like? Kinda cute chapter right? well..i've got a lot to come up with from here on in..so..if you guys have ANY suggestions..let me know. now i'm off to work..good day_**


	12. Growing Up

The new family sits on the couch comfortably as they watch Scooby-Doo the movie, Jaiden's pick. It was only half way done and Marissa, glancing at the clock, sees that it was almost 10:30 at night. Something tells her it's getting too late for a five year old to be up.

She looks over at Jaiden who was resting his head on Ryan's arm, and notices the little boy's eyes were slowly closing, she smiles to herself and looks at her husband who was deep into the movie.

"Ryan." She begins quietly, not wanting to wake up Jaiden. Ryan looks over at her confused, and Marissa gestures to the sleeping angel. "You really wore him out." She says with a small laugh.

Ryan nods with a smile and adjusts himself so he could pick up Jaiden. "I'll get him upstairs. You have to call Theresa." Marissa nods and picks up the phone, dialing Theresa's number.

"Hey Theresa…yeah sorry we didn't call earlier, they were playing baseball…yeah…but Jaiden's asleep now…do you want him to call you tomorrow morning? Okay, great…I'll talk to you later…bye." Marissa hangs up the phone and begins to clean up the living room.

Ryan lays Jaiden on the bed gently and pulls up the covers, tucking the little boy in. _He looks so innocent…like an angel. How could I deny taking care of this kid? _He thinks to himself, as he puts a pillow on either side of the bed to make sure Jaiden doesn't fall.

Marissa walks to the guest room where the couple decided, would be Jaiden's room for the rest of his stay, and notices Ryan sitting on the bed beside Jaiden.

"Do you wanna go to bed now?" she asks with a small smile on her face.

Ryan nods without a word and walks up to his wife, giving her a small kiss on the forehead. "Let's go."

They settle into bed and Ryan puts an arm around Marissa, causing her to smile. "It's funny, just a week ago, we had 6 week old twins growing inside me…now we have a 5-year-old boy running around the house." She says, looking over at her husband.

"I know, time goes by so fast." Ryan says jokingly. "But are you okay with all of this?"

Marissa nods her head a few times and smiles, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Ryan gives her a smile back and gently drops his lips to hers. "I love you." He says softly as they rest their foreheads together.

"I love you too." Marissa whispers. Suddenly, the moment was interrupted by the sound of the doorknob opening.

"Aunt Marissa? Uncle Ryan?" The couple turns their heads and sees Jaiden standing by the door.

"What's wrong, Jay?" Marissa asks.

"I woke up, and I was by myself…" Jaiden replies gently, tears in his voice, "Can I stay in here with you?"

Marissa looks over at Ryan and sees a small smile on his face. They suddenly realize that their lives are changing quickly and there's no time for screw-ups or selfishness. Their family is getting bigger and routines are changing. Marissa returns the smile and looks back at Jaiden. "Sure, come here, sweetie." She replies.

The couple makes room in between them where Jaiden can lay. "I'm sorry we left, buddy." Ryan says softly as he pulls the covers up over the three of them.

"My mom keeps a night light on in my room so I don't get scared." Jaiden says, cuddling up to Marissa. "Can we do that tomorrow night?" he asks with a yawn.

Ryan and Marissa lets out a small laugh and nods, "Of course we can."

And with that, the little boy nods, falling asleep again. Ryan and Marissa, with smiles on their faces, leans in carefully and shares a small kiss before saying their goodnights.

* * *

The next morning, Ryan wakes up to a sleeping Jaiden beside him, but Marissa was nowhere to be found. He looks over at the clock and lets out a yawn. 9:46. Suddenly, he hears noise coming from the bathroom making him get up gently so he doesn't wake the little boy up.

"Marissa?" he says through the door, "babe, you in there?"

Finally, he hears the door opening from the other side, revealing Marissa's tear stained face. "Morning sickness is a bitch." She says warily, wiping her face.

Ryan pulls her into his embrace and gently kisses the top of her head. "I'm sorry, babe." He says gently.

Marissa shakes her head, "Not your fault…" she begins, "actually, it kind of is. But I forgive you."

Ryan lets out a small laugh and Marissa pulls away, before walking over to the dresser and picking up her cell phone.

"My mom called." She says, seeing the 1 missed call.

_"Hi sweetie. It's mom…just called to see how you were doing. How was Italy? I wanna hear all about it. What do you say we go baby shopping today? Call me back. Bye, sweetie."_

Marissa closes her phone and looks over at Ryan who was sitting beside the sleeping Jaiden. "What did she say?" Ryan asks.

"She wants to go baby shopping today. And I guess I should tell her about Jaiden." She says with a small laugh, "I wonder how she's gunna be taking that." Ryan smiles and looks over at the sleeping angel. "I'm gunna bring Summer with me for reinforcements and I'm gunna buy Jaiden some new sheets too, and some toys, I wanna decorate the room so it looks like it's a little boy's room."

"Marissa, he's not living with us forever." Ryan says, looking at his wife, "I mean, just until Theresa can fix some stuff at home."

"I know, but still, what if we have twin boys?" she asks as she walks over to the bed and sits on the other side of Jaiden, brushing hair away from the little boy's face. "Jay? Wake up, sweetie." Jaiden's eyes begin to flutter open, revealing the cutest brown eyes Marissa has ever seen. "We've got a big day today, we're gunna go to the mall with Aunt Summer and buy toys." She says gently, making the little boy sit up slowly.

"Toys?" he asks softly, rubbing his eyes.

"Yeah, buddy. You guys are going shopping. Isn't that exciting?" Ryan asks, with slight sarcasm in his voice. Jaiden nods his head a few times and Ryan lets out a small laugh. "So, what do you want for breakfast?"

"We have chocolate chip pancakes, do want that?" Marissa asks softly. Jaiden nods his head again and lets out a small yawn.

"Okay, let's get downstairs and make you some pancakes then, kiddo." Ryan says playfully as he takes Jaiden and puts him up on his shoulders causing the little boy to laugh.

Marissa smiles to herself as he watches the two boys going down the stairs, and Ryan pretending Jaiden's about to drop, "Don't fall Jay, don't fall."

It almost seems like a dream, the past few weeks. She was about to be a mom, hell, she already is to Jaiden. And the reality that in about 7 and a half months, her and Ryan will have twins, sends a warm feeling through her whole body. They're definitely growing up.

**Kind of a boring chapter I know...sorry..lol. I need to start coming up with more. But give me suggestions on what the next chapter should be like..thanks guys. I love reviews.**


	13. Familiarities

Marissa pours herself a cup of tea as Jaiden eats his pancakes on the dinner table. Leaning on the counter, she smiles to herself as she watches the little boy use two hands to squeeze the syrup onto his pancakes. _I'm responsible for this kid…even if it's just temporary, he's…_

Marissa's thoughts begin to surface and her mind begins to race. What was Jaiden to her? He was Theresa's son, and Theresa was her friend…but her and Ryan are watching over Jaiden for the time being…and Sandy and Kirsten have always thought of Ryan as a son, so should Ryan and Marissa think of Jaiden as their son? Even if it's just temporary?

Suddenly, the phone's ringing interrupted her thoughts.

"Hello?" she says through the phone.

"Hi…umm, Marissa?" she hears a low, yet an awfully familiar voice.

"Umm, yes?" _Who is this guy?_ She thinks to herself, not being able to figure out who's the voice was coming from.

"It's umm…is Ryan home?' the voice asks.

"No he's at work right now, may I ask who's speaking?" she asks, politely as she sees Jaiden look up from his pancakes and flashes her a toothy grin.

She smiles back, and waits for the voice to reply. "It's…umm, it's me…Trey." Almost instantly, her hearts stops and the smile fades and her first reaction was to hang up the phone.

**Later**

Marissa's mind is clouded with worry and curiousness as she helps Jaiden get ready for the mall and for Summer to get there as soon as possible to she can have someone to talk to about it. _Why would he call? It's been years…why is he suddenly calling now?_

"Coop!" Once again, Marissa's thoughts are interrupted. "Coop, you in here?" Summer shouts, as she walks into the house.

"I'm upstairs in the guestroom!" she shouts back as she pulls down a shirt over Jaiden.

"There you guys are! Hey Jay!" Summer rushes to Jaiden and wraps her arms around him.

"Hi, Aunt Summer!" Jaiden says into Summer's shoulder, his voice muffled.

"When's your mom getting here, Coop?" she asks, turning to Marissa with Jaiden still in her arms.

"Soon." Marissa says easily as she picks up Jaiden's clothes from the floor, still thinking about the phone call

"Umm, okay?" Summer utters, suspiciously.

Marissa turns her head to Summer and lets out a sigh. "Trey called." She says, flatly.

Summer stared at her best friend trying to process what she just said, "Trey? Like, Ryan's brother, Trey?" she asks as she puts Jaiden down.

"Well, what other Trey do you know?" Marissa asks, turning her attention back on the clothes.

"When did he call?" Summer asks, ignoring Marissa's remark.

"Earlier."

"What did he say?"

"At first I didn't know who he was, he asked for Ryan and I said no and asked who he was," Marissa says, re-living the 5 second phone call, "and then when he told me, I hung up."

"You hung up?" Summer asks, as she sees Jaiden putting on a baseball cap and bouncing a ball completely oblivious to what was going on.

"Well what was I suppose to say? The last time I saw him was at the hospital, 4 years ago." Marissa says, looking at her best friend, "He was at the hospital, cause I shot him remember?"

"Right." Summer says easily, nodding. "Well, did you tell Ryan?"

Marissa shakes her head, "I'll tell him tonight."

"You think it's a good idea?" Summer asks as she sits on the edge of the bed.

"Well, he has the right to know, doesn't he? He hasn't seen or spoken to Trey since, who knows when." Marissa replies, letting out a sigh.

"True." The two girls sit in silence for a while, Marissa trying to figure out how to tell Ryan and Summer trying to figure out how Ryan would react.

"Well, I gotta go and get ready, before my mom gets here." Marissa says, finally breaking the silence, "Oh, and if she gets here before I'm out of the shower, you get to tell her why there's a 5-year-old little boy in the house." She says easily as she walks out of the room.

"Whoa, wait what?" Summer says, snapping back to reality. "I'm not telling her!" Summer begins to protest, but she hears the bathroom door shut and lets out a frustrated sigh, looking over at Jaiden, "Oy, do you see what I have to put up with?" she mutters under her breath as Jaiden beams at her.

**Sorry about the late update..lol..i know i usually do it alot. well i'm coming up with a bunch of things right now..so please review**


	14. Lucky Ones

Julie closes the car door, walks up to the front door and rings the doorbell. She smiles to herself as she begins to picture what her grandchild would look like or whom it would look like. She almost cringes at the thought of herself being a grandmother but Marissa was finally happy, and hell, she was gunna be a grandma.

Finally, the door opens revealing a little boy, no more than 5 years old.

"Well, hello there." Julie says, at first she wants to know who the hell this kid was, but then again, he was so cute. "What's your name?" she asks nicely, bending over to his height, instead of a "Who are you?"

"I'm Jaiden." The little boy says plainly, but with a small smile on his face. "I'll go and get Aunt Summer."

Jaiden runs off leaving Julie on the doorway, puzzled. Finally, Summer comes into view and walks over to where Julie was.

"Hello, Mrs. Cooper. Marissa's in the shower, she should be out soon." Summer utters uneasily. _Marissa better get the hell out here soon._

Julie nods and smiles at Summer who steps back to let her in. Summer closes the door and turns around to see Julie staring at her suspiciously, "Are you gunna tell me who that child was, or do I wait for Marissa?" Julie says, with a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

Summer lets out an uncomfortable laugh, "Oh, who, Jaiden?" she asks, with a stupid smile on her face.

Almost as if on cue, Marissa comes into the living room, Jaiden holding her hand. _Damnit came out too early._ "Hi, mom!" Marissa says, trying to sound as cheerful as possible and gives her mother a kiss on the cheek.

"Hi sweetie," Julie begins and gives her daughter a hug, "Can you tell me what's going on?" she asks, looking over at Jaiden who was now on the couch, watching TV.

Marissa lets out a small sigh and looks at Julie, "Jaiden is Theresa's son." Marissa begins, Julie nods in understanding, but still has that "I-still-don't-get-it" look on her face, so Marissa continues, "And, he's gunna be staying with us for a while because Theresa's having some money issues right now, and her mom's sick, and she needs help so Ryan and I are gunna be watching Jaiden for a little while, just until Theresa can get things in order at home." Marissa says before taking in a deep breath.

Julie makes a small "oh-I-see" sound and smiles at her daughter, "Well, I think it's great that you're helping Theresa."

"You do?" Marissa asks, dumbfounded with her mother's response.

"You do?" Summer had the same thing going through her head.

Julie smiles at the two girls and nods her head, "I do. Now go and finish getting ready so we can get to the mall and buy some baby things and maybe get Jaiden some toys to play with, I'm sure you and Ryan don't have anything for a 5-year-old to entertain themselves with." She says easily before walking over to the little boy.

Summer and Marissa look at each other for a moment and Summer shrugs at her best friend, obviously lost for words. Marissa just gives an awkward smile and walks off to finish getting ready.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Ryan walks out of his office building and gets into his Range Rover. Pulling the keys out of his pocket, he puts it into the ignition and starts the car. He lets out a small sigh, grips the wheel and drives out of the parking lot.

Hearing a small sound, he takes his cell phone out of his pocket and opens it.

"Hello?" he says through the small receiver.

"Hey man." Ryan finds himself smiling to himself as he hears his best friend's voice.

"What's up, Seth?" he asks.

"Dude, can you pick me up? I just got home from work and Summer's not home and I'm bored."

"Seth, you have your own car. Why don't we meet at my house?"

Ryan hears a small "ugh" sound through the phone and Seth says, "Fine, are you almost home?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, I'll see you in like 5 minutes then." Ryan hears a small click and he closes his phone, smiling to himself he adjusts himself to a more comfortable position and drives home.

Ryan pulls up on his driveway, already seeing Seth leaning on his car.

"How'd you get here so fast?" Ryan asks as he shuts the car door behind him.

"My car's like chitty chitty bang bang, dude." Seth says easily, as they walk up to the front door.

"Or, you were already here when you called me." Ryan replies as he opens the front door and walks in.

"I told you I was bored, man." Seth utters, causing Ryan to let out a small laugh.

"I'm home!" he shouts as he closes the door behind him, "Anyone in here?"

"Maybe their still at the mall." Seth replies easily as they walk into the kitchen.

"I guess. Do you want a beer or something?" Ryan asks as he opens the fridge.

"No, I gotta drive home." Seth replies, leaning on the kitchen counter.

"I was just gunna give you one." Ryan says as he opens his bottle.

"Dude, you know how that goes straight to my head." Ryan shakes his head and laughs, as he takes a sip from his beer.

"Ry?" The two men hear Marissa's voice coming from the front door. "We're home!"

Seth and Ryan walk to the front door and sees the three women and then Jaiden running towards Ryan.

"Hey, buddy!" Ryan says as he takes the little boy in his arms before walking over to Marissa and gives her a kiss on the cheek and then Julie.

"Cohen, we need help on getting the stuff out of the car, so can you, please?" Summer asks, facing Seth.

"Well, it's great to see you too, sweetie." Seth says easily as he walks over to his wife. Summer laughs and kisses him on the lips.

"So you met Jaiden then?" Ryan asks, facing Julie.

"Yes, I did. And I love this little boy." Julie says with a smile as she takes Jaiden into her own arms and out of Ryan's.

"Yeah, Uncle Ryan, I got a bunch of toys and new bed sheets with cool cars on them and Grandma Julie got me a soccer ball so we can play!" Jaiden says excitedly.

Ryan and Seth looks at Julie in amazement, "Grandma Julie?" they say together.

"Well what else he supposed to call me?" Julie utters, without a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

"Well, you guys, I think Seth and I should get home. Shopping fatigue" Summer says as she gives Marissa a quick hug.

"Yeah, me too, sweetie. I'm exhausted." Julie says as she puts Jaiden down and kisses Marissa on the cheek.

"Okay, you guys'll be back so we can get started on the babies' room right? Ryan's off tomorrow." Marissa says as Ryan nods his head in agreement.

The two women nod their heads and Ryan looks at Seth, "You're off too. You can help." He says.

"Okay, but I just paint. I'm not great with the wiring and the schlepping of heavy things. Ask Summer." He says pointing towards his wife.

"No, he's not." Summer agrees.

The five adults says their goodbyes after the men take out about 50 shopping bags from the trunk of the car.

"So, how was your day?" Ryan asks Marissa as they settle into their bedroom. Since Marissa got Jaiden a night-light, there was no need for the little boy to sleep with them anymore.

"Oh, it was great. My mom seems to really like Jaiden, so we don't have anything to worry about anymore." Marissa replies as she rests her head on Ryan's chest. Ryan nods his head and gives Marissa a gentle kiss on the top of her head. Suddenly, Marissa remembers the phone call. "But, umm, someone called for you this morning." She begins.

"Oh? Who was it?" Ryan asks.

"It was Trey…"

Marissa can almost feel Ryan's heart stop and she looks up at him, his face in disbelief.

"What did he say?" he asks, trying to sound casual.

"Not much. I kind of hung up on him." Marissa says uneasily.

"You hung up on him?" Ryan asks, Marissa pulls away and sits up.

"Well, I didn't know what to say? I got nervous, I just…I'm sorry."

Ryan shakes his head and takes her hand into his, "It's fine…I'll just…I'm sure his phone number's still in our called ID."

"You're gunna call him back?" Marissa asks, trying to hide her disbelief.

"Well, yeah. There's always something important when Trey calls." Ryan says.

"Yeah, or trouble." Marissa utters coldly, Ryan stares at her and Marissa looks down at her hands, "I'm sorry, but I just…I guess I'm not exactly over that little incident."

Ryan nods his head in understanding and gives his wife's hand a small squeeze, "I won't let anything happen to our family." He says softly and reassuringly, "I promise." Marissa nods and forces a smile. "I'm just gunna go and get a glass of water and then check on Jaiden. I'll be back." He says, giving Marissa a kiss on the lips. As he was about to pull away, Marissa deepens the kiss.

Breaking away, Marissa stares into his eyes and smiles. "I love you." She says softly.

"I love you too." Ryan whispers and plants another small kiss on her lips before getting out of bed. He gives her another reassuring smile as he walks out of their bedroom.

Ryan opens the fridge and squints his eyes at the sudden brightness. He takes a bottle of water and closes the fridge, his mind clouded with questions. He looks at the clock by the phone. 9:45. It's not that late, he could call back.

With that, he picks up the phone and sees an unfamiliar number. _This has to be it._ He thinks to himself. He presses the dial button and puts the phone to his ear.

"Hello?" Ryan hears a low voice, he knows it was his turn to say something, but no words would come out.

"Hello?" the voice repeats.

"Hey, it's umm, it's Ryan." Ryan finally says, gripping the bottle of water in his other hand. At first, there was no reply, just breathing.

Until finally, Trey speaks up, "Hey bro."

Surprising himself, Ryan felt a small smile forming on his face as he hears his older brother's low voice, "How are you man?" he asks.

"I'm doing great, actually. My girlfriend's family lives in Newport and she wanted to visit, so I wanted to come with…see how my little brother was doing." Trey replies, a small smile in his voice.

Ryan lets out a small laugh and a sudden rush of happiness and relief flows through his body, "Well, everything here is great. Marissa's pregnant. We're having twins." He says, the smile not leaving his face.

"Dude, that's awesome!" Trey says.

"I know, I know. But, tell me about what you're up to, man. Where exactly have you been?" Ryan asks, remembering the fact that he hasn't seen or spoken to Trey in years.

"Well, I was in Miami, and I ran into a friend of mine, one of my better friends who actually made a good life for himself, and he let me crash at his place for a little while. A couple of weeks later, his dad was opening a restaurant and wanted him to manage it. To my surprise, he wanted a partner and he picked me." Trey says with a small laugh.

At that point, Ryan lets out a sigh of relief and smiles, "That's awesome, bro. I'm glad everything's going great for you."

"Yeah, man. And I met Lauren at opening night. We've been together ever since." Trey utters through the phone.

"That's awesome, Trey." Ryan says, as he finds himself smiling and nodding.

"Yeah, but, I gotta get going. I'm here for another 2 days. How about you call me tomorrow, we could go out for dinner, I'll bring Lauren and you bring Marissa."

"Sounds great man. I'd love that."

"But, umm, Marissa and I didn't exactly have a great conversation this morning. So can you tell her I'm sorry, for everything…and that, I've changed…for the better."

Ryan looks down at his feet and nods, "I'll tell her, man. And Trey, I'm really proud of you."

"Thanks little bro. I appreciate it." And with that, the two brothers say their goodbyes. Ryan hangs up the phone and takes another sip of his water bottle. He smiles to himself and realizes that the Atwood brothers are really lucky; after everything they've been through, they pulled through it and things are finally working out for the both of them.

Ryan walks up to the guestroom and sees Jaiden sitting up on his bed, holding the soccer ball in his tiny hands.

"You still awake, buddy?" Ryan asks, walking into the bedroom.

Jaiden looks up at Ryan and nods his head, "I couldn't sleep." He utters as Ryan sits on the bed beside him. Ryan nods his head, without another word, "I miss my mom." Jaiden says softly, tears in his voice.

Ryan puts an arm around the little boy and rubs his arm, "How about, we go see her tomorrow? Would you like that?" Ryan asks.

Jaiden nods his head a few times and looks up at Ryan with a smile on his face, "Are you and Aunt Marissa gunna have a baby?" he asks.

Ryan smiles and nods, "We're having two, actually." He replies.

"Two babies?" Jaiden asks, bewildered.

"Yup, two babies, and who knows, maybe if you stick around, you'll have two more friends to play with." Ryan replies.

Jaiden looks down at his soccer ball and nods, "Yeah, and I can teach them how to play baseball and soccer." Jaiden says softly.

Ryan nods with a smile on his face and drops a soft kiss on Jaiden's forehead, "Now, you gotta go to sleep. We've got a big day tomorrow." Ryan says as Jaiden nods and moves himself on the bed so he's lying down. "Goodnight, Jay." Ryan says softly, ruffling the little boy's hair softly.

Jaiden lets out a yawn and nods, "Goodnight, Uncle Ryan." He says softly before drifting to sleep.

Ryan walks out of Jaiden's room and into the master bedroom only to see Marissa already fast asleep on the bed. Ryan smiles to himself and gets into bed with her. He gives her a small kiss on the forehead and wraps his arm around her waist. Marissa cuddles up closer and smiles in her sleep as Ryan closes his eyes and he too, falls into a deep slumber.


	15. Is It Goodbye?

"Jay, you have to eat all of your cereal, okay? You can't just eat the marshmallows. You wanna grow up big and strong don't you?" Ryan smiles to himself as he hears Marissa's voice in the kitchen talking to Jaiden.

"Like Uncle Ryan," The little boy points out, "I wanna grow up big and strong like Uncle Ryan." Ryan lets out a quiet laugh as he hears Jaiden's voice.

"Good morning." Ryan says as he walks into the kitchen, giving Marissa a kiss on the cheek and then ruffles Jaiden's hair gently before pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"So what's on the agenda today?" Marissa asks, spreading cream cheese on a bagel.

"Jaiden wants to go see his mom today." Ryan replies, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Sure, that'd be great."

Suddenly, the phone rings causing Marissa to jump. "Jesus Christ, who calls this early?" she mutters under her breath before picking up the phone. "Hello? Oh, hey…oh my God…are you okay?" Marissa asks through the phone, causing Ryan to look at her, "do you wanna talk to him? Ok…do you want us to? Yeah…of course…bye." Marissa hangs up the phone gently, and looks over at Ryan before heading out into the living room.

Ryan follows her out and Marissa turns to face him. "That was Theresa." She begins, sadness in her voice, "Her mom died last night."

Ryan looks down at his feet and lets in a deep breath. "Is Theresa okay?" he asks softly.

"Well, I'm not sure. She said she'll be coming to pick up Jaiden today." Marissa replies, causing Ryan to look up.

"Already?" Ryan asks and Marissa shrugs, "Well, we have to talk to Jaiden then."

Marissa nods her head in agreement before the couple walks back into the kitchen, hand in hand.

"Hey, Jay. Can we talk to you for a sec?" Ryan asks. Jaiden nods his head, his mouth full of cereal and looks at Ryan and Marissa expectantly. "Your mom's gunna be picking you up today."

"Okay," the little boy replies plainly, "does that mean I'm not gunna be sleeping here anymore?" he asks. Ryan looks at Marissa and then back to Jaiden, shaking his head. Jaiden looks down at his cereal and makes that frowning face he does when he's thinking, "Did grandma go up to heaven already?" he asks, looking back up to the couple.

Ryan, a little taken back by the little boy's knowledge, doesn't say anything.

"Yeah, but she's doing okay up there now. She's not sick anymore." Marissa says, reaching over to hold Jaiden's hand.

The little boy nods in understanding, "That's good then." He says softly, just loud enough for Ryan and Marissa to hear.

"So, can you go upstairs so we can get all your clothes and toys ready?" Marissa asks, trying to sound as cheerful as she could. Jaiden nods his head, taking one more spoonful of cereal to his mouth, "Okay, we'll be upstairs in a minute." Jaiden hops of the chair and makes his way upstairs.

Only when she was sure Jaiden was gone, Marissa lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I don't want him to leave." She says plainly, causing Ryan to look at her, "I know he's only been with us for a few days, but I love that kid. I don't want him to leave."

Ryan lets out a small sigh and pulls Marissa into his embrace, "Me neither." He says softly, "But we'll be seeing him again. We can always drive to Chino."

Ryan feels Marissa nod her head, "Yeah." He hears Marissa saying quietly. The couple finally breaks away, giving each other one small reassuring smile before heading upstairs to help Jaiden pack up his things.


	16. New Parents, sort of

Ryan looks up at the clock on the wall. 3:25. _Why isn't she here yet?_ Almost as if she knew what her husband was thinking, Marissa put her hand on Ryan's and rubbed it gently, "She'll be here soon. Don't worry." She says reassuringly.

Ryan nods, forcing a small smile and looks over at Jaiden who was sitting beside him, his eyes focused on the TV. He was still yet to inform Marissa about dinner tonight with Trey, but that could wait, can't it?

"Jay, do you want some juice?" Marissa asks, standing up. The little boy nods, not taking his eyes off the TV. "You want some too babe?" she asks, Ryan.

"Yeah, sure. Thanks." Marissa nods with a smile and makes her way into the kitchen. Suddenly, the phone rings for the second time that day.

"I got it!" Marissa shouts from the kitchen.

Marissa looks at the called ID and sees "Sandy's Cell" light up on the small screen.

"Hey Sandy" she says through the phone.

"Hey, Marissa?" she hears Sandy's voice through the small receiver.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Umm, is Ryan around?"

"Yeah, he's in the living room with Jaiden, do you wanna talk to him?"

"Actually, I'm on my way there. I just got a call from one of my friends…there's been an accident."

Marissa's heart suddenly stops, at Sandy's tone and the word "accident", "Okay? What happened?" she asks, cautiously. The next few words were a blur. The only things that Marissa was able to process were, "Theresa…accident…truck ran a red light…don't know if she's okay or not, I'll call the hospital…on my way."

Marissa hangs up the phone, her hands slightly shaking.

"Babe, where are our drinks?" Marissa turns her head and sees Ryan with a smile on his face and Jaiden on his hip.

"That was Sandy…" she chokes out. "Theresa was in a car accident."

Ryan's face suddenly falls, and he slowly puts Jaiden down. "Jay, can you go in the living room?" he asks, still looking at Marissa. The little boy nods and disappears into the living room. "Is she okay?" Ryan asks, trying to keep composure.

"I don't know. Sandy's on his way…I couldn't really understand what he was saying." Marissa utters silently, looking at her husband.

Suddenly, Jaiden walks into the kitchen again, "Mr. Cohen's at the door." The little boy says, looking up at the two adults expectantly.

Ryan walks over to the front door and sees Sandy with a sad look on his face. "Hey kid." He says softly.

"Is Theresa okay?" he asks, Marissa beside him. Sandy looks down at his feet and runs his hand through his hair, not knowing exactly how to break the news.

"Sandy…" Marissa says softly.

Finally, Sandy looks up and shakes his head. "She didn't make it."

Almost instantly, Ryan's whole body became numb and every memory, every inch of detail he remembers about Theresa flashed through his mind, like an old film on mute. He begins to feel tears sting his eyes and he blinks them back.

He hears Sandy's voice again, and it almost echoes in his head, "She died almost instantly. They tried to save her…but she lost too much blood. I'm so sorry."

Ryan looks up at Sandy and then back at Marissa who was looking down at the ground with tears in her eyes. He walks over to his wife and puts his arms around her. He begins to feel her tears soaking down his shirt and he hears her struggle for breath.

"I have to go to the office and arrange some things." They hear Sandy say, "Will you guys be okay with Jaiden here?"

Suddenly, Ryan remembers. Jaiden…how the hell is he supposed to tell a little boy that his mother was dead? He feels Marissa begin to pull away, wiping her tears.

"Wait, what's gunna happen with him?" she asks Sandy.

"Well, we're gunna have to find a place for him. I have to find out where Eddie is and if he's willing to take his child or—

"No," Ryan says finally, stepping up, "can't he stay with us?"

"Yeah, I mean, Theresa did give us permission to watch over him. Can't you do something about that?" Marissa asks.

"I can try. It's the same thing I had to go through with you," Sandy replies, looking at Ryan, "I have to find Eddie first, and if we cant find him, I'll have to call Child Services and make arrangements for the child to stay with you."

"So if you can't find Eddie, then we can adopt Jaiden?" Ryan asks.

Sandy lets out a sigh and looks at Ryan, "We'll see."

After a few minutes of more explaining from Sandy, the couple decide it was time to explain the whole thing to Jaiden.

"Jay?" Ryan and Marissa walk into his room and sees the little boy wearing his baseball cap and rolling his baseball around on the floor. "Hey bud, can we talk to you?" he asks softly, Jaiden looks up at them and nods.

Ryan looks at Marissa whose eyes were still red and looks back at Jaiden. He picks up Jaiden from the ground and the three sits on the bed with Jaiden on Ryan's lap.

"Listen buddy, you know how your mom was suppose to pick you up today?" he asks, Jaiden nods, not looking at him, almost as if he knew what was coming. Ryan lets out a small sigh and he can feel Marissa's hand on his now. Ryan swallows the hard lump in his throat, not knowing what else to say.

"She's not coming anymore?" The little boy asks softly.

"No, baby." Marissa replies, tears still in her voice. "She's umm…she's in heaven now too." Jaiden looks up at Marissa and she can almost see him asking her why with his eyes, and it breaks her heart that she doesn't know how to answer him back.

"So, I'm staying here again?" Jaiden asks, looking at Ryan.

Ryan nods and gives Marissa's hand a small squeeze. "Well, we still have to fix some stuff up, but we'll try our best for you to stay with us, if that's okay with you."

Jaiden gives them a small smile and nods, "If I stay, does that mean you're my new mom and dad?" he asks.

Ryan and Marissa look at each other and almost as if they knew what each other was thinking they smile at Jaiden's words. "Again, if that's okay with you." Ryan says gently.

Jaiden nods his head a few times with a smile on his face, "I've never had a dad before." He points out, almost sounding grateful, "And since you guys are having babies, I'm gunna be a big brother, right?" he asks.

Marissa lets out a small laugh and nods, "Yeah you will."

The little boy smiles again and looks down, "Awesome." He utters, just loud enough for Ryan and Marissa to hear, "I've always wanted to be a big brother." The couple nods their heads and Ryan plants a soft kiss on the little boy's forehead. "Can you teach me how to play soccer now?" Jaiden asks, looking up at Ryan, "Dad?" Ryan smiles at the word. _Dad…it's got a ring to it. I like it._

Jaiden then looks at Marissa, "Mommy is that okay?"

Marissa begins to feel a smile form across her face and she nods, "Of course, sweetie."

Jaiden smiles gratefully and gently wraps his small arms around Ryan and Marissa's necks. The new family sits in silence for a moment trying to let every little detail sink in. In one day, they've lost something important to them, but also gained something special afterwards. It's ironic really, there are changes happening, but for once, it's a change they're all willing to get used to.

**I hope you guys don't hate me for killing Theresa off, but it'll get better I promise. Some more drama with Trey and labor's coming up soon. Reviews are great.**


	17. Deja Vu

"Hi, umm, may I speak to Trey please?" Ryan says through the phone. It's been a few hours since Sandy came over and they haven't gotten a call yet and Ryan decided that tonight's not a good night for him and Marissa to have dinner with Trey and his girlfriend.

"Hello?" Ryan hears Trey's voice through the receiver.

"Hey, man."

"Oh, hey Ryan."

"Listen man, I can't go out tonight. It's not a good idea." Ryan explains.

"What? Dude come on, we haven't seen each other in forever." Trey points out.

"Theresa's dead." Ryan finally says, and almost instantly, all the hurt that he felt earlier came rushing back.

"What?"

"She's gone and her son's staying with us."

Trey doesn't say anything for a second, and Ryan lets out a sigh, "Okay, listen man. Can you just meet me for like an hour? Tops?"

"What? Why?" Ryan asks, confused.

"I need your help with something. Please, let's meet at the diner okay?" Trey asks, and Ryan can almost hear panic in his voice.

"Alright fine. But I can't take too long." Ryan says, frustration growing in his voice.

The two hang up the phone and Ryan explains to Marissa that he has to meet Seth at the diner for a bit. No use getting her worried right?

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Ryan fiddles with a plastic fork as he waits for Trey in one of the booths in the diner. He looks up at the door and sees his brother in an expensive looking jacket and jeans.

"Hey, little brother." Trey says as Ryan gives him a hug.

"It's good to see you man." Ryan says softly. The two men sit across from each other and Ryan notices Trey looking nervous. "You okay?" he asks.

Trey runs his hand through his hair and looks at Ryan, "Listen man I need your help."

Ryan, feeling uneasy about his brother's tone, lets in a deep breath. "What is it?" he asks, seriously.

"I need some cash." Trey blurts out, causing Ryan to sit back, surprised.

"What do you mean? I thought things were going great for you. With the restaurant and Lauren, I mean—

"Ryan, listen, I owe people some money that I don't have." Trey explains.

Ryan stares at his brother in disbelief and leans in, "I thought you've changed, man." He says rather calmly.

"I did…I mean, I have. But I made a mistake, come on man. I really need your help. If Lauren finds out—

"Find out what?"

Trey sits back, clearly frustrated, "When I came to Miami, I was a wreck okay, Ry? I needed a fix, I needed something to forget." He explains, Ryan runs his hand through his hair trying to keep calm, "So, I started dealing…but then the restaurant started so I stopped. I paid most of the stuff I didn't sell but it wasn't enough—

"How much do you need?" Ryan asks, not wanting to hear anymore.

"50 grand." Trey replies.

Ryan looks at his brother; trying to figure out how in the hell did he think Trey's actually changed, "50,000 dollars, Trey? How the hell did you manage to lose that much money? I thought the restaurant was going great."

"That's the thing, I was using the restaurant's money. My friend's already threatened to fire me if I don't get the money back, man. Come on."

"And let me guess, that's how you can afford this?" Ryan says angrily, pointing at Trey's jacket, "You've been stealing money and you're using it for yourself! No wonder you came back! Just so you can cause more trouble and drag me down with you!"

"Ry, come on, it's not like that."

"Oh yeah? Well then what is it? Huh?" At this point, tears of anger were threatening to fall on Ryan's face. Trey says nothing but looks down at the table, "Trey, I have a family now. If Marissa finds out…she didn't even want me to call you back in the first place. But the idiot that I am, thought my big brother's actually changed!"

"Ryan, please. Just help me out man. I can't go to anyone else." Trey utters quietly, almost begging.

Ryan looks at him again, and seeing the state Trey was in, he felt that if his older can't be responsible for himself, then who will? "I'll give you the money." Ryan begins quietly, taking out his checkbook, "But after this, I want you out of Newport. I never want to hear from you again." He says as he writes on the small piece of paper.

Trey nods sadly, and Ryan hands him the piece of paper, "Thanks man. I really appreciate this. And I promise you, this is it, I'm done." Trey says.

"I've heard that before." Ryan mutters, getting up from the booth, "I gotta get going, Marissa's waiting for me."

Trey nods in understanding. "Thanks again man."

Ryan, in turn, nods his head and puts his hands in his coat pockets, "Just take care of yourself." He says before heading off and disappearing outside leaving Trey sitting by himself, staring at the small piece of paper in his hands.

**Alright, the drama's over for now. So let's get back to more fluff, shall we? Hope you guys like it. i like reviews.**


	18. There's Only This

Ryan opens the door and walks into a quiet house. He lets out a small sigh and throws his coat on the couch.

"Ry? Is that you?" Ryan hears his wife's voice from upstairs.

"Yeah." He simply replies. Ryan leans on the stairs as he sees Marissa come into view.

"What did Seth want?" she asks, walking down the stairs.

"I didn't see Seth." Ryan utters as he walks towards the couch, causing Marissa to stare at him in confusion, "I saw Trey."

"Oh." Marissa whispers. _Why didn't you tell me?_

Ryan turns around to face Marissa, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you." He begins.

Marissa nods and clears her throat, "It's okay."

"Well, I talked to him last night, and he asked if we wanted to have dinner with him and his girlfriend." Ryan explains. Now Marissa was even more confused.

"So, you had dinner without me?" she asks with a small laugh.

Ryan shakes his head with that half smile he has and continues, "He said that he's changed, and I believed him. And when I called to cancel because of what happened today…well he said he needed help with something so I met him at the diner." Ryan pauses and sits on the couch and Marissa follows and takes a seat beside him, "He's working at this restaurant, and of course, Trey did something stupid that would cause him his job and his girlfriend. He was dealing drugs when he left Newport and he couldn't pay back the money so he stole 50 grand from the restaurant." Ryan utters.

Marissa looks at Ryan in disbelief and looks away, "So you gave him the money."

"He's my brother." Ryan says simply.

Marissa nods, not exactly approving of her husband's decision, but she knew better than to start something with Ryan, especially on that day, "So, what happens now?" she asks.

"I told him I never want to hear from him again, and to get out of Newport." He says, finally looking at her.

Marissa nods and takes Ryan's hand into hers, "You okay?" she asks gently.

Ryan forces a smile and nods, "Yeah."

Marissa plants a soft kiss on his lips and rests her head on his shoulder, "I'm glad." She whispers. Ryan kisses her softly on the top of her head and lets out a small sigh.

Suddenly, the couple sees Jaiden walking down the stairs. "I'm finished putting all my toys back in the closet." The little boy says softly as Ryan puts him on his lap.

"That's good, buddy." Ryan replies as he adjusts himself to a more comfortable position, "Do you wanna come with us to the doctor's tomorrow to see the babies?" he asks, remembering their doctor's appointment they have the next day.

Jaiden nods his head slowly with a small smile.

"What's wrong, babe?" Marissa asks only to feel ashamed to even bother asking when she knows exactly what was bothering the child.

"I'm not gunna be seeing my mommy ever again, am I?" Jaiden asks, his voice beginning to break. Ryan looks at Marissa whose heart was breaking at the little boy's remark. Jaiden looks up at Ryan and Marissa, obviously expecting an answer. "Is it because I did something wrong?"

"No, of course not, kiddo." Ryan says, holding the child tighter in his arms.

"So is she gunna come back?" Jaiden asks, sounding hopeful.

Ryan looks at Marissa who was fighting back tears, and the back at Jaiden. "No, Jay. She can't come back." He explains softly.

"Why not?" the little boy asks, making Ryan want to just break down. How exactly do you explain death to a child?

Ryan lets in a deep breath and blinks back tears, "Jay, when a person dies, their body can't work anymore. But you know what? Your mom's always gunna be watching over you, so will your grandma. You'll have two guardian angels." Ryan explains trying to create a more cheerful atmosphere.

Jaiden looks down at his feet and starts thinking again. "Yeah, at least grandma won't be lonely up there, right?" he asks, sounding more like the cheerful little boy Ryan and Marissa knows and loves.

"That's right." Marissa says, taking the little boy's hand into hers.

Jaiden nods his head and looks at the two adults again, "You guys aren't gunna die anytime soon, are you?" he asks.

Ryan and Marissa shake their heads and forces a small smile for the little boy, "No, we're not going anywhere." Marissa says softly.

"Good. I don't want you guys to die." Jaiden says.

Ryan plants a soft kiss on his forehead and lets out a sigh, "Well, let's get you to bed, okay?" Jaiden nods his head and Ryan carries Jaiden up the stairs, his head resting on Ryan's shoulder.

"Can you stay here for a little bit?" the little boy asks as Marissa begins to tuck him in.

"Sure, babe. We'll stay until you fall asleep okay?" Marissa replies gently, giving Jaiden a kiss on the forehead.

"Oh, wait." Jaiden says quickly, as he gets out of bed and runs over to the closet.

"What's that you got there?" Ryan asks as he sees Jaiden picking up a teddy bear.

The little boy stands still for a moment and holding the teddy bear tightly and then walks back over to Ryan and Marissa.

"Billy Bear." He replies simply as he climbs back into bed, "My mommy gave it to me a long time ago. I don't sleep with him because I'm not a baby anymore but she said that I can always hold on to Billy Bear when I'm sad." He continues with a yawn.

Ryan and Marissa smiles at Jaiden whose eyes were now beginning to close. "Tomorrow's gunna be fun." He says softly, as he snuggles under the covers, "I can't wait to see the babies."

The couple lets out a small laugh as they listen to Jaiden's sleepy voice, and almost instantly, the little boy was fast asleep.

Ryan looks over at Marissa who was watching the sleeping angel with a smile on her face. "Ready to go to bed?" he asks.

Marissa nods before brushing hair out of Jaiden's eyes and plants another kiss on his forehead.

Ryan smiles at the sight and lets out a sigh. "What?" Marissa asks as she notices Ryan staring at her.

"You're really great with him you know that?" Ryan replies as Marissa wraps an arm around his waist.

"He's a great kid." She replies softly.

Ryan nods his head, "And in about 7 months, we'll have two more." He says with a small laugh as they walk towards their bedroom.

"I can't wait." Marissa utters with a smile.

**Not a great chapter, i know. but i was rushing it..i update everyday and it's gunna stay that way. lol. next chapter will be better. reviews are great guys **


	19. Weird Cravings

**Author's Note: Hey sorry for the lack of update guys! My computer crashed and i just got it fixed so everything's gone..thankfully i've got everything on the site still..so i just had start over the chapters that hasn't been put up yet. It kinda sucks since I totally forgot everything else..but..I tried..hope you guys like it.**

"Are you excited to see the babies?" Ryan asks Jaiden as he buckles him up on the car seat.

"Yeah! Am I gunna have two brothers or two sisters?" Jaiden asks, causing Ryan to let out a laugh as he sits down on the driver's seat.

"We don't know yet, sweetie." Marissa replies, putting her seat belt on, "Which one do you want more?"

Jaiden thinks to himself for a minute and then looks up, "I want both." He replies simply.

Ryan smiles and turns on the car, "Well, we won't know for another, what? 3 months?" he says, looking at Marissa who nods her head. "Yeah, so we've still got a long way to go."

Ryan begins to drive the car, listening to Jaiden talk about what he's going to be teaching the babies, "I'm gunna teach them how to play soccer, and baseball, I'm gunna teach them how to swim and I'll help with taking care of them…" the little boy says happily, looking out the window.

"And are you gunna help me change diapers?" Marissa asks with a small smile.

"No, That can be daddy's job." Jaiden replies simply.

Ryan smiles to himself and keeps his eyes on the road as he listens to Jaiden's voice and Marissa's laughter.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Jay, you're doing it, good job!" Summer says as she holds up Jaiden in the pool.

Ryan and Marissa decided to have a barbecue at their house to celebrate. The adoption is finalized and they were officially Jaiden's guardians. It's been about 4 months since the accident and after the funeral, Jaiden wasn't himself for a couple of weeks, which was expected, but with the help of the rest of the family, Jaiden's more comfortable now. He still asks about Theresa a few times but with Kirsten and Sandy's help, Ryan and Marissa learned to answer the child's questions better.

"Look! Daddy! Look at me! I'm swimming!" Jaiden shouts to Ryan who was by the grill with Seth.

"Good job, kiddo! You're doing great!" Ryan says with a smile.

"Is dinner almost ready, babe?" Marissa asks as she walks over to Ryan and Seth.

"Almost." Ryan replies.

"Mom! Mommy, look at me!" Jaiden shouts to Marissa. At first, Marissa was a little uncomfortable when Jaiden called her mommy, she has no intention of replacing Theresa at all, but Jaiden seems to be adjusting well with the family, and Marissa loves the kid to death, so it only feels right now when she thinks about how Jaiden considers her as a second mother.

Marissa lets out a laugh and walks over to the pool, "That's great, sweetie!" she says with a smile, "How about after you eat dinner, you can have some ice cream as a reward?"

Jaiden clings to Summer's neck and nods his head happily, "And then can we go back in the pool?" he asks sweetly after getting out of the water.

"Sure, baby." Marissa replies as she wraps a towel around Jaiden's small body.

"Is dinner almost ready? I'm starving." Summer says, walking over to the boys.

Seth puts an arm around his wife and lets out a small laugh, "Sum, we ate before we got here."

"Well, I'm still hungry." Summer protests, "Are you almost done, Chino?"

Ryan lets out a small laugh and nods his head, "You guys go inside, give me like another 30 seconds."

A few minutes later, Julie arrived with Jimmy. It was the first time he's met Jaiden, and the two were already best friends. While the rest of the adults were talking, Jaiden played in the pool with his new grandpa.

"Dad, do you want some wine or anything?" Marissa asks from the back door,

"No thanks, kiddo. Jay! No splashing!" Jimmy laughs.

"You started it!"

Marissa smiles to herself and walks back into the house. She sees Kirsten pouring herself a glass of water and Marissa decides to walk over.

"Hey, Kirsten."

"Hey, Marissa." Kirsten says with a small smile before taking a sip of her water.

"You know, we have wine in the fridge if you want some." Marissa offers.

Kirsten lets out a small laugh and sighs, "Wow, I haven't had wine in years." She points out.

Marissa stares at her for a moment, confused, "Years? What do you…Oh!" Kirsten lets out a laugh and takes another sip of her drink, "Sorry." Marissa says softly, embarrassed at her naivety.

Kirsten shakes her head and smiles, "So, how's the mom-to-be…or the mom?" she asks with a laugh, remembering Jaiden.

Marissa lets out a laugh, "Weird." She replies plainly, "I mean…it's a change, that's for sure."

Kirsten nods with a smile, knowing exactly what the younger woman was talking about, "But it's a change you're willing to get used to." Kirsten says softly. Marissa nods her head and smiles, "You're gunna be an incredible mother, Marissa. I mean, you already are with Jaiden."

Marissa looks down and smiles shyly. A compliment like that gives you an amazing feeling…and coming from Kirsten? Super-mom? That's an even greater feeling, "Thanks, Kirsten. That means a lot." She says, giving Kirsten a hug.

"Well do you know what you guys are having yet?" Kirsten asks.

Marissa shakes her head, "Well, if we want to we can find out next week. But I don't think Ryan wants to know the sex of the babies until they're born."

"Of course, he's always loved surprises hasn't he?" Kirsten asks with a laugh, "But how's Jaiden doing with all of this? Have you guys talked to him yet?"

"Well, he seems really excited. The first time we brought him to the doctors he thought he was actually going to see the babies." Marissa laughs as she remembers that particular visit to the doctors.

_"Jaiden do you wanna see the babies now?" Dr. Davis asks as she turns on the monitor. Jaiden nods his head with a wide grin on his face. Dr. Davis smiles and turns to Marissa, "I expect you know the drill, Marissa?" she asks with a laugh._

_"I'm familiar with it, yes." Marissa replies with a laugh and lies down on the small bed before the doctor squeezes the tube of gel on her stomach._

_"What's that?" Jaiden asks in a whisper to Ryan._

_"You know that little thing the doctor's holding?" Ryan asks, pointing to the transducer. Jaiden nods his head, amused at the whole scenario, "Well, it needs the gel so we can see the babies clearly on the monitor."_

_Jaiden makes a face and looks at Ryan, "The monitor? I don't get to see the babies for real?" he asks with a small frown._

_Ryan looks at Marissa and Dr. Davis, and the three adults laugh, "No, buddy. They're still in mom's tummy." Ryan replies._

_"See, there they are." Dr. Davis says, pointing to the monitor._

_Jaiden walks over and looks closer for a moment and then makes a small, "Humph" sound, "They don't look like babies." He utters, not taking his eyes off the screen._

_Dr. Davis lets out a small laugh, "But they will soon." She says as she moves the transducer across Marissa's middle, "They seem to be doing well, and they're due on December 18th." She says, looking at the couple._

_Ryan takes Marissa's hand in his and smiles, "Hear that kiddo? You'll be able to see them in December." He says softly, pulling Jaiden with his one arm._

_Jaiden flashes a big smile and nods, "I get to be a big brother for Christmas." He says happily._

Marissa smiles at the memory and looks at Kirsten, "He was pretty upset that he didn't get to the babies for real, but he seemed happy when he found out he's gunna be a big brother for Christmas."

Kirsten laughs and nods her head, "I can just imagine."

"Honey?"

The two women turn their heads to see Sandy walking towards them, "You ready to go? I'm exhausted. Jaiden got out of the pool and wanted to play tag." He says, running his hand through his hair, "Where that kid gets all his energy is beyond me."

Marissa and Kirsten laugh at Sandy's remark, "Try running around after him every day when you're carrying this." Marissa says, pointing to her middle.

"And yet, you always catch him before I do."

Marissa turns her head and sees Ryan, "Yeah, you're not exactly a runner are you?" she utters jokingly.

Ryan lets out a small laugh and wraps an arm around his wife, "Are Julie and Jimmy still here?" Sandy asks.

"Uh, yeah. But they're about to leave, just as soon as Jimmy puts Jaiden down from his shoulders." Ryan says with a smile.

"Jay, we've gotta go."

The four adults hear Jimmy's voice, following Jaiden's laugh, and then Julie's voice, "Jimmy! You're flight leaves early tomorrow!"

Jimmy laughs and holds Jaiden in his arms, "Alright buddy, I've gotta go."

"It's really great to see you, Daddy." Marissa says softly, giving her dad a hug, with Jaiden still in his arms.

"You too, kiddo." He whispers in her ear.

"Promise me you'll be here in December for the twins?" Marissa asks hopefully.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world."

The family begins to say their goodbyes and after a few minutes it was only the core four left with Jaiden.

"What do you guys wanna do now?" Ryan asks, holding Jaiden in his arms.

"We can go swimming again?" Summer points out, "What do you think, Jay?"

Jaiden nods his head happily, and Summer takes him out of Ryan's arms and into hers.

"Well, I'm gunna go and change then." Seth says as he begins to walk towards the bathroom.

"Wait, can you and Seth go to the store?" Marissa says, causing Ryan and Seth to look at her confusingly. "We don't have anymore food." She points out.

"Babe, we just had dinner." Ryan utters.

Marissa looks at her husband and pouts, "I'm still hungry."

"Come on Chino, the woman's carrying a litter. She's eating for two more people." Summer says, walking over to her best friends.

Ryan lets out a small laugh, "Fine, what do you want me to get?" he asks, wrapping and arm around Marissa.

"Um, can you get some Doritos, fries…and some pineapple dip?" she asks.

The other three look at each other confusingly until Summer finally clears her throat, "Pineapple dip for what?" she asks, looking at Ryan whose face was telling her, _Weird cravings_.

"For my Doritos and fries." Marissa replies, sounding like her friends should've already known.

"Are you sure?" Seth asks, "I mean, we can go to the pier and get you some chilly fries if you want."

"It makes me throw up, I can't eat it."

"But you love chilly fries." Ryan points out.

"Well apparently your children don't." Marissa utters, "So, Doritos, fries and pineapple dip please?"

Ryan looks at Seth and lets out a small sigh, "Alright, let's go then." He says before giving Marissa a kiss on the cheek, "Do you want anything Jay?"

"I wanna go swimming!" the little boy says happily.


	20. Mood Swings

**Hey guys. Thanks so much for the awesome reviews. I really appreciate it. Anyway, this is another short chapter, but the labor's comin up soon..probably 1 more fluffy chapter..so..keep them reviews coming! Thanks.**

_Hey Coop, Ryan said you were still asleep so I decided to make plans with your voicemail. It's like 11:30, what are you still doing sleeping? Well anyway, I was thinking you and I could hang out today, now, I know you shouldn't be going out anymore since you can barely walk and I don't want your water breaking at the mall, so I'll go over there. Seth and Ryan are off, and Ryan already said him and Jaiden would go to my house. So, I'll be there in about an hour. Love you Coop._

Marissa smiles to herself as she hears her best friend making a small "muah" sound before hanging up the phone.

"Hey, you're up."

Marissa turns her head and sees Ryan holding a tray full of food with Jaiden trailing in behind him, "Good morning you two." She says softly giving Ryan a small kiss on the lips

"We made you breakfast!" Jaiden says happily as he hops on the bed beside Marissa, "I helped daddy make the pancakes."

Marissa plants a soft kiss on his forehead and smiles, "Well thank you. Everything looks great." She says before taking a blue berry into her mouth, "So, it's a boy's day out I heard."

"Boy's day in, actually. Seth wants to teach Jaiden how to play Star Wars properly." Ryan points out, "What are you and Summer doing today?"

Marissa helps Jaiden cut the pancakes to pieces and then takes a sip of her juice, "Well, for the last three months I've been in bed watching TV and eating by myself, so today I'm planning on doing that with Summer, it's gotta be more fun when someone's with you right?" she utters jokingly.

Ryan lets out a small laugh, "Well, it's almost over, babe." He says reassuringly, "Right, Jay? How much longer until we get to see the babies?"

"Two more days!" Jaiden says with a big smile on his face.

"That's right." Ryan says with a smile before he hears the doorbell, "That's gotta be Summer, I'll be right back."

Marissa nods her head and continues to eat her breakfast, "Have you eaten yet, baby?" she asks Jaiden who was lying down on his stomach.

Jaiden nods his head a few times and then looks at Marissa, "When are we putting the Christmas tree up?" he asks.

"Tonight, when you and daddy get home. The whole family's gunna be here to help us because it might be our last night together before the babies come." Marissa replies.

"Hey guys!"

Marissa and Jaiden look towards the doorway and sees Summer walking inside with Ryan.

"Hey Sum!" Marissa says happily as they hug.

"You…" she begins as she picks up Jaiden, "And your daddy should get to my house soon." She utters, now looking at Ryan, "Seth's not one to wait patiently."

"You're right. Let's go buddy." Ryan aggress taking Jaiden out of Summer's arms, "Your dad should be in Newport in a few hours so Julie said they'd be here around 4:00, so will Sandy and Kirsten. And we'll be home before dinner." He says, giving Marissa a kiss on the cheek, "Don't have those babies without us."

"I promise." Marissa says jokingly. The two boys walk out the room leaving Summer and Marissa.

"So, what do you wanna do?" Summer asks as she takes a seat beside Marissa and then putting a blueberry in her mouth.

"Well, I would like to go Christmas shopping, but since Ryan's already done that and I can't move from this bed if my life depended on it… we can watch Full House on DVD." Marissa utters, "It's downstairs, so can you go and get it?"

Summer laughs at her best friends remark and gets up from the bed, "I'll be right back then."

A few minutes later, the two women were watching TV on the bed and eating the remainder of the blueberries.

"Hey, Sum?" Summer looks over at Marissa, "Do you think I'm gunna be a good mom?" she asks.

"Of course, Coop! You're gunna be an amazing mom!" Summer replies putting an arm on Marissa's knee, "I mean, Jaiden's doing pretty great right?"

Marissa nods her head a few times and Summer smiles reassuringly before turning her head to watch TV again.

"But like what if the babies start crying the middle of the night and I can't get them to stop?" Marissa asks, causing Summer to look at her again "And the babies are gunna be needing a lot of attention…I don't want Jaiden getting jealous." Marissa continues, her voice beginning to break.

_Oy, mood swings…great._ Summer forces a smile and pulls her best friend into her embrace,"Coop, you're not gunna be going through this alone, you've got Ryan, and me and Seth, and everybody else. Those three kids will have more than enough love." Summer says reassuringly, rubbing Marissa's back.

"You're right." Marissa pulls away gently and wipes the tears away from her face, "Thanks Sum. You're gunna be godmother right?"

"Duh! I thought that was already a given." Summer points out making Marissa laugh, "Now, let's finish this episode and then I'm gunna order some Thai, sound good?"

Marissa shakes her head, "I can't eat it anymore…it makes me sick." She utters, making a face.

"Wow, it's things like that when I don't really ever want to get pregnant." Summer points out.

"Tell me about it."

"Well, what do you want then? And please don't say fries and pineapple dip."

Marissa lets out a small laugh, "Well, I'm craving cheese pizza right now."

Summer lets out a sigh of relief, "Cheese pizza sounds great."


	21. Almost there

"Time for the star Jay," Ryan says. Jaiden picks up the silver sparkling star and holds it in his hand, "Ready?" Ryan asks.

Jaiden looks over at Marissa who was sitting on the couch, smiling at him and then back to Ryan, "Mm-hmm."

Ryan smiles and picks up the little boy. "Okay, just put it right there." He says pointing at the top of the tree, Jaiden obliges and then looks back at adults looking up at him, "Good job, kiddo." Ryan says softly, giving Jaiden a soft kiss on the side of his head.

"Can I do that every year?" Jaiden asks hopefully as Ryan puts him down.

"Of course. It can be our yearly tradition." Marissa replies as Jaiden takes a seat beside her.

"And next year, we're gunna have two other bundles of joy running around…" Julie says happily, "Well maybe not running, but you know."

"That's right. Tomorrow's your due date right?" Kirsten asks.

Marissa nods her head and smiles, "Yup, Dr. Davis wants us to be there early so I can get set up. And since I'm gunna be doing it naturally, I want you three to be in the room," she says to Julie, Summer and Kirsten, "And Ryan of course."

"What about us?" Jimmy asks, gesturing to himself and Sandy and Seth.

"Whoa, who said I wanted to be in the room?" Seth points out.

"Yeah, I mean…I lived through it once with Seth. I don't think I wanna see it again." Sandy utters, remembering back to Kirsten's birth with Seth.

"Oh yeah. You didn't really like watching did you?" Kirsten asks jokingly to her husband.

"Yeah, Jimmy, you wouldn't even look when I was giving birth to Marissa…" Julie begins, "And the doctor had to get a nurse for you when Kaitlyn was coming out because you were hyperventilating."

"And that's why I don't want you in the room." Marissa points out.

"Well, I'd still like to feel included." Jimmy mutters.

"Really is it that bad?" Ryan asks, making a face.

"Ryan, it's like watching a—

"Okay, I don't really wanna hear this." Summer finally says, "I'm gunna go and check on the food." She utters before heading into the kitchen.

"Well anyway, someone's gotta stay with Jaiden, so that'll be your job, dad. With Seth and Sandy." Marissa points out, "But, umm, mom? Was it that bad?" she asks, with a slight hint of anxiety in her voice.

"Oh, sweetie, you have no idea." Julie points out putting a hand on Marissa's shoulder.

"Thanks mom. That's really comforting." Marissa utters.

Julie lets out an "Are-you-kidding-me?" laugh and looks at Kirsten, "Tell her Kiki."

"Honey, there's no possible way of sugar coating it." Kirsten says with a laugh, but seeing Marissa's nervous face, she decides to make the younger woman feel slightly better about all of it, "But once the doctor hands them to you…it's like everything else disappears and there's no other feeling like it."

Marissa smiles and lets out a sigh of relief, "I can't wait." She says.

"Okay guys, dinner's ready." Summer says, walking into the room.

Ryan begins to help Marissa get up from the couch and suddenly, the smile fades away from Marissa's face and the room gets quiet until Seth finally opens his mouth, "Whoa, Marissa did you just…Ryan could've brought you to the bathroom—

"Cohen! Her water just broke!" Summer shouts, hitting Seth on the arm.

"Your…what? Already?" Ryan stutters, holding Marissa still.

"Well, Ryan! We gotta get her to the hospital!" Kirsten finally says.

Julie and Kirsten gets on auto-mom-mode and begins to run around, "Ryan where are the bags? You three stay here with Jaiden…we'll call you once, well you know…" Julie says to the three other boys as Ryan takes the bag and runs to get his shoes on.

"Are you having the baby now?" Jaiden asks.

"Yeah, sweetie. And then we're gunna call so you can see them later okay?" Marissa says as she waddles towards the door, "Ryan, babe, can you help me please?"

"Right, right sorry." Ryan says rushing to Marissa's aid, "Umm, can you guys just follow? We're gunna go now." He says as he opens the door.

"Yeah, we'll be there soon." Kirsten replies.

"Okay, guys…we'll see you all soon, we're gunna have a baby!" Ryan says happily.

"Okay, honey, can we go now, please?" Marissa asks impatiently.

"Right, sorry. Bye guys."


	22. The Birth

**Okay, here it is! It's a bit rushed..but I tried my best. I wanted to add a little suspense...so next update would be tomorrow night, hopefully. Thanks guys.**

"Yes! At the hospital in under 10 minutes! We did it!" Ryan shouts as he wheels Marissa into the hospital.

Marissa shakes her head and lets out a sigh, "Yes Ryan, the hard part is _truly_ over."

Ryan lets out a small laugh, "Come on, that was fast, wasn't it? You're usually the wreck less driver."

"Finally! You guys made it!"

Ryan and Marissa turns their heads and sees Julie, Kirsten and Summer walking towards them.

"How'd you guys get here so fast?" Ryan asks, deadpanned.

"We drove…how far did you park?" Julie asks.

"Not far…we were just—

"Okay, you guys stay here and talk while I go and have two babies." Marissa says beginning to roll away in the wheel chair.

The other three rushes behind her before seeing Dr. Davis coming out of a room, "Marissa, great you're here. We'll just get you set up in a room and then we'll see how far along you are." She says.

The five adults nod their heads and Ryan begins to wheel Marissa in the room. After setting up, Marissa was on the bed in a hospital gown while Ryan, Julie, Kirsten and Summer sit in the room expectantly while Dr. Davis checks on Marissa.

"Okay, well, you're only about two cm dilated, so it'll still be a while." Dr. Davis begins, as she takes the latex gloves off, "Had any contractions yet?" she asks.

"Not yet…but I know better than to get my hopes up." Marissa says jokingly.

Dr. Davis laughs and tells her she'll be back in an hour to check her again. Julie gets up and stands beside Marissa's bed.

"How you feeling honey?" she asks, brushing hair out of Marissa's face.

"Not to bad yet…nervous but…ow! Ow! Oh my God." Ryan immediately gets up from his seat and rushes to Marissa.

"Okay, just breathe…breathe." He begins to say as Marissa grips his and Julie's hand tightly.

"Wow, so that's what contractions feel like." Marissa utters afterwards.

The next few hours seemed to drag by slowly and Marissa doesn't seem to be making that much progress.

"It's been hours and still no baby…not even one! The miracle of life sure is a snooze fest." Summer whines, as she shuts her magazine frustratingly. It was almost 1 o'clock; 6 hours since they got to the hospital and Marissa was only 5 cm dilated.

"I know, but it can't take much longer." Kirsten says reassuringly, "Have you called the boys? See how they're doing?" She asks, turning to Julie.

"Yeah, Jaiden's asleep, and apparently, so is Seth." She replies, flipping through her magazine lazily, "Marissa, sweetie? Do you want me to get some more ice chips?" she asks.

"Yeah, that sounds great." Marissa replies tiredly.

Julie gets up and straightens her shirt, "Do you guys want coffee or anything?" she asks.

The three other adults nod their heads gratefully as Julie walks out of the room. Almost instantly, Dr. Davis comes in and checks on Marissa again.

"6 cm." She utters, "We're moving along. Just slowly." Marissa lets out a frustrated sigh and lies back down on the bed, "Don't worry, you're doing great, Marissa. We're almost there. I'll be back soon." Dr. Davis says, walking out of the room.

"Can't we make it go faster?" Marissa asks, anxiety in her voice, "I mean, six cm? I can start pushing can't I?"

Kirsten walks over to the bed and brushes hair out of Marissa's face, "Sweetie, you start pushing at 10 cm and it still hurts like hell. You wanna push at 6 cm?"

Suddenly before she got to protest, Marissa takes Kirsten's hand and shuts her eyes, "Ryan!" she screams, "Oh my God!"

Ryan rushes over and takes her hand as Marissa takes in deep breaths. A few seconds later, the contraction and the screaming stopped and the room was quiet again.

"It's gotta be over soon, right? It can't hurt that much if it's not!" Marissa says, putting a hand on her middle.

Summer looks at her sympathetically, "Aww Coop, I wish I could understand what you're going through…"

Marissa lets out a small laugh, "Trust me, you don't"

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

"Ryan…I'm so tired!" Marissa cries out, as her husband wipes the sweat off her forehead, "It's been 10 hours! Why don't they wanna come out?" she asks, tears in her voice.

Ryan lets out a sigh and softly kisses the top of her head, "I'm so sorry, baby. It's almost over. You're doing great."

"Okay, Marissa, let me just check on you again, okay?" Marissa sits up unenthusiastically as Dr. Davis puts on her latex gloves.

"Doctor! You gotta give me drugs, or an emergency C-section! There's gotta be something you can do to get them to come out!" Marissa cries out.

Dr. Davis lets out an uneasy laugh and looks at Marissa and Ryan, "I don't think there's gunna be a need for any of that…" she says, standing up, "I think you're ready to start pushing."

"What?" Marissa asks disbelievingly.

"10 cm; you guys are about to become parents." Dr. Davis says with a small smile on her face,

"Oh, my God. Ryan, they're almost here!" Marissa utters, still in shock.

Ryan let out a laugh and grips Marissa's hand, "Yeah, are you ready babe?" he asks. Marissa nods her head and looks over at Julie, Kirsten and Summer.

"Coop! You're gunna be a mommy!" Summer shouts happily, clasping her hands together.

Dr. Davis begins to set up and the room was full with about 5 more nurses. The delivery was going smoothly so far but to Ryan it felt like hysteria. His heart was racing and thoughts clouded his mind. He was about to be a father.

Marissa lay back in pain. Her only movements consisted of gripping Ryan's and Summer's hand tighter while Julie and Kirsten stood back and watched.

"Marissa, sweetie, you're doing great. I can see the head." Dr. Davis says, "Just a few more pushes okay?"

Marissa throws her head back in exhaustion and breathes in deeply, "I can't do this, I'm too tired!" she cries out.

"Coop, come on, you can do this." Marissa nods her head, and gets ready to give another push as she hears Summer's voice, followed by Ryan's.

"You're doing awesome baby! It's almost out!"

Marissa breathes out one more push until, once again, Marissa throws her head back. Suddenly, she hears a loud cry and all the waiting, the weird cravings, the morning sickness…everything was worth it.

"It's a boy!" Dr. Davis says as she hands the infant to a nurse.

"Coop, he's perfect!" Summer says, in awe as she watched the nurses clean the little baby off.

"Is he okay?" Ryan asks, tears of joy in his voice.

"He's just fine." Dr. Davis replies, "Marissa, you ready for another round?"

Marissa feels a smile form on her face and nods, "Do I have a choice?" she asks jokingly, her voice filled with tears.

"Okay, here we go. When I say push, you push." Marissa acknowledges him as she grabs hold of Ryan and Summer's hand again before giving a few pushes, "Marissa, the baby seems to be breach, so you're gunna have to push harder."

"I'm sorry! I can't do this!" Marissa cries out.

"Baby, just one more good push okay? You can do this, we're almost there." Ryan says reassuringly, holding Marissa.

Marissa nods her head quickly several times and with one final push, she breathed life to another baby. "And this one's a baby girl!" the doctor exclaims.

But the room was quiet and suddenly, panic rushes through Marissa's body, "Why isn't she crying?" she asks anxiously. The doctor doesn't reply but carries the baby to where the nurses were, "Ry! Is she okay?"

**tbc...**


	23. New Babies

Ryan lets go of Marissa's hand and rushes across the room, "Doctor is she okay?" he asks as the nurses fuss over the small baby who wasn't crying, or moving for that matter, "What's going on? What's wrong with her?"

Thoughts racing through her mind, Marissa sits up on the bed anxiously as she prays to hear a loud cry from her new baby girl. The next few minutes seemed to drag by slowly and the silence of the room was almost deafening. _Please, let her be okay. God, let her be okay._

Suddenly, another cry fills the room and relief flows through Ryan's body, "She's okay, the umbilical cord was around her neck." Dr. Davis explains, "And she seems to be the smaller one, so it was a lot for her to come out breach."

"Is she okay?" Ryan hears Marissa's tearful voice. He turns around and sees the three women watching expectantly.

"Yeah, she's fine." Ryan replies walking back to the bed, clutching his chest with one hand. Marissa lies back in bed, and lets out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. "You did awesome, Riss." Ryan says softly, planting a soft kiss on her forehead.

"How you feeling, Coop?" Summer asks, still holding Marissa's hand.

Marissa lets out a small sigh, and smiles, "I'm tired." She replies as she looks over at the nurses and doctors fussing over her two babies. "Can I hold them?" Marissa asks eagerly.

"Of course." One of the nurses hands Marissa one of the babies and whispers, "This is Baby boy Atwood."

Another nurse hands Ryan his new daughter and he stares down at her in awe, not believing he took part in making such a beautiful being. The baby's eyes begin to slowly open, and the sight takes Ryan's breath away as he sees two beautiful crystal blue eyes.

"They're perfect." Kirsten says softly, as she, Julie and Summer watched the new parents hold their new babies. 20 perfect fingers, 20 perfect toes, two noses that Kirsten immediately noticed as Ryan's and, without a doubt, the babies inherited Marissa's rosy pink lips.

Marissa rocks the baby gently and plants a soft kiss on his forehead, "Hey, handsome." She whispers gently as tears of joy begins to brim her eyes, the baby's face was almost an exact replica of her husband's. "I'm gunna love you so much, that no woman is ever gunna be good enough for you."

Marissa looks up at Ryan and can see pure joy in his eyes. Ryan catches a glimpse of Marissa watching him and he bends down gently as he plants a soft passionate kiss on Marissa's lips, "I love you," he whispers gently, "so much."

Marissa smiles sweetly at him, "I love you too." She says softly. "You ready to trade?" she asks. Ryan nods as they trade carefully.

"She's perfect." Marissa whispers, with a smile on her face, "Hi, sweetheart…thanks for coming out of me."

Ryan lets out a small laugh as he rocks his new son back and forth gently, "Hey, kiddo…" he says softly, "You have an older brother waiting to play with you at home."

"Right, I'm gunna call the boys. Let them know the new babies are here." Kirsten says, before walking out of the room.

"Can I hold them?" Summer asks excitedly.

"Both of them?" Marissa asks with a small laugh.

"I'll sit." Summer says confidently as she takes a seat on one of the armchairs. The couple nods their heads and hands Summer the twins, "Aww, they're so perfect you guys!" she says softly, "I'm your Aunt Summer…and I will always have candy."

"Okay, my turn, my turn." Julie says, walking over to Summer, "I'll hold one, for now. It's been a while." She says with a laugh as Summer hands her the baby boy.

"Okay, they're on they're way." Kirsten announces, walking back into the room, "Oh, can I hold one?" she asks before Summer hands her the other baby.

Ryan puts an arm round Marissa and plants a kiss on the side of her head, "Thanks." He whispers in her ear. She looks at him confusingly and Ryan smiles, "For loving me, for giving me two beautiful children, for talking me into taking Jaiden in…for everything." He says gently.

Marissa smiles and kisses him softly on the lips, "It was my pleasure." She utters.


	24. Christmukkah Miracle

**Sorry it took so long for me to update. I had writer's block for this story so it might not be that great and i started getting into "We're Meant To Be" but no worries..this story is almost finished. Maybe a few more chapters.**

"Hey, can we come in?"

Ryan, Marissa and Summer turn their heads to see the four boys walking inside the room with Seth holding Jaiden in his arms. Kirsten and Julie went down to the cafeteria to grab something to eat.

"Oh, my gosh, kiddo." Jimmy says softly as he sees Marissa holding the two babies, "They're beautiful."

Marissa smiles as her father drops a soft kiss on the top of her head.

Sandy walks over to Ryan and the two men hug, "Congratulations, kid." He says softly.

"It's incredible," Seth begins to say as he puts an arm around Summer, "One minute they were inside you, and 13 hours later, here they are." He says, causing Summer to hit him playfully, "How you feeling Riss?" he asks, as he rubs the spot where Summer just hit.

"I'm better now." Marissa replies.

A few minutes later, Julie and Kirsten are back with some food and coffee for everyone else.

"Jay? Buddy, we're here." Seth gently puts Jaiden down on the bed beside Marissa.

The little boy rubs his eyes tiredly and cuddles next to Marissa, "Jay, sweetie, the babies are here." She says softly.

Jaiden looks over to see where Ryan was and smiles, "That's them?" he asks. Marissa nods her head and Jaiden stares at the two babies in awe and smiles, "They're so tiny." He says softly as he reaches over and touches the baby boy's arm, "Can I hold them?"

"Sure buddy." Ryan puts him down on the bed beside Marissa and hands him one of the babies.

"Hi there." He whispers, just loud enough for the adults to hear, "I'm your big brother." Ryan and Marissa watches gratefully as Jaiden talks to the babies softly. Marissa begins to feel tears brimming her eyes as she watches her three kids.

"Do you guys know what they're names are yet?" Seth asks as he holds the baby girl.

"Actually, I think we do." Ryan says, putting a hand on Marissa's shoulder, "Right, babe?"

Marissa nods and smiles, "You guys, meet Tyler Aidan, and Riley Summer."

Summer's head shoots up and she looks at Ryan and Marissa who were staring at her with smiles on their faces.

"Are you guys serious?" she asks in disbelief, "You're naming your baby after me?"

The couple lets out a laugh and nods, "Sum, you mentioned to me that you wanted me to name my daughter after you." Marissa points out.

"Yeah, but I didn't think you would go with it." Summer says still in disbelief.

"Fine then we'll change it if you want us to, we had—

"No, no. I want you to keep it." Summer interrupts as she rushes to Ryan and Marissa, "It sounds great…I just…I can't believe you're naming her after me."

"Summer, you're my best friend." Marissa says sincerely, "You have been since the first grade. Why wouldn't I name my daughter after you?"

Summer smiles at her best friend and wraps her arms around her gently, "Awh, I love you Coop."

"Dude! I'm your best friend! Why didn't you name him after me?" Seth whines.

Ryan lets out a laugh and pats Seth on the back, "I'm sorry man. We just didn't think Seth would fit for a middle name."

"Oh, and Summer does?" Seth utters causing Summer to hit him on the arm, "Ow! Summer! I'm holding a baby!"

"Then, don't make fun!" Summer hisses, "I think it sounds great you guys."

"Hey, do you guys know what today is?" Seth asks, still looking down at little Riley, "It's the first day of Christmukkah."

The whole family lets out small laughs and Jaiden makes face, "What's Christmukkah?" he asks, confused.

Seth looks at Ryan, "Dude! You haven't told him about Christmukkah yet?" he asks in disbelief. Ryan shrugs with a smile and walks over to Jaiden who was still holding Tyler, "Come on, man. Just humor me." Seth whines.

Ryan leys out a laugh, "Seth maybe you can explain it to him. You've always loved telling the Christmukkah story right?"

Seth smiles slyly and hands Riley to Summer before walking over to Jaiden, "Okay, buddy, people have been picking one holiday over another, like, Christmas or Hanukkah, Christmas or Hanukkah. Well for our family, we never have to pick." Seth explains as Jaiden looks at him expectantly, "Because we have our ultimate holiday called, Christmukkah."

Jaiden looks down at his little brother and smiles, "So my little brother and sister are our family's Christmukkah miracle." He utters.

Seth looks over at Ryan and Marissa with a smile and then back at Jaiden, "I have taught you well, my child."


End file.
